Back In Time
by LadyHitachiin
Summary: Sasu/Saku* She had to go back with one main goal: to stop Sasuke from betrayal. Yet the closer she got to him, the more he seemed to make her goal harder, with his want for strength and his growing attraction for her. How was she to keep him when she was his main competitor? Rated M for many reasons.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters. I also do not make any money from my writitngs, unfortunately.

*I've noticed that my scene changes aren't separated like they're supposed to be. I apologize for any confusion that may have caused so I went back and made it clearer that the scene changes.

Sasu/Saku* She had to go back with one main goal: to stop Sasuke from betrayal. Yet the closer she got to him, the more he seemed to make her goal harder. How was she to keep him when she was his main competitor? Rated M for many reasons.

Chapter 1: Back In Time

_"How far will I be going back in time, Tsunade-shishou?"_

_"Some time before the Uchiha massacre."_

_Sakura arched an eyebrow in question at the blonde woman sitting before her, her hands folded under her chin as her elbows rested on her desk. "Why that far back?"_

_"That was the starting cause of this war. Sakura, you will need to befriend Itachi and Sasuke Uchiha, find out the reasons for Itachi wanting his family dead and do your best to stop Sasuke's betrayal. You will be sent back into your childhood years and back into the body you had at that time."_

_"What about my strength? My abilities?"_

_"That will be taken care of."_

_Sakura stared at her shishou for a moment, contemplating. "How?"_

_"I have developed a new jutsu for this very purpose. You will have a mark placed on you, something very little, hardly noticeable, but it will allow you to keep your skills, even as a child."_

_"How does this mark work?"_

_"It is a seal of sorts. Your true power will be retained unless you do the specific hand signs to unlock them. However," she continued, sighing, "the seal will only work on concealing your chakra." Tsunade looked up into the kunoichi's jade eyes, both expressions deadly serious, "That means you will have the stamina and strength that you have at this moment."_

_"Why would you take such a risk?"_

_The blonde Hokage let a smirk cross her lips, "I can't have my star apprentice getting hurt when I'm not there."_

_Sakura's face fell, "Shishou. . ."_

_Tsunade sadly smiled at the pinkette before her that she came to love as a daughter. "I'm sure you will understand how to act when you get there."_

_Sakura nodded, her face serious again. "Once I complete this mission, how will I return?"_

_"You won't."_

Sakura clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She hated this. She understood that it was her duty as a Leaf shinobi but it was just so _unfair_. She knew that she was the only one capable of going back and changing the future. Yet, she didn't understand.

"Sakura." a depressed male voiced mumbled behind her.

She didn't bother to look as she continued to stare at the grass below her. Their training field brought back so many memories. Memories she would have to live through again. Sure, it was nice to have the opportunity to go back and do better, but she would still have the knowledge that she could never return to the present.

"Naruto." she whispered. Said male walked closer and sat down next to her, looking worriedly at the side of her face.

"I heard from Granny about the mission."

Sakura nodded solemly, her bangs falling in her face.

"We're gonna miss you, Sakura."

The kunoichi nodded again, bringing her knees up to set her head on them, her arms wrapping around her pink locks. Tears threatened to pool out of her tired eyes. At that moment, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her, pulling her into a warm, musculiar chest.

"I'm gonna miss you."

That was it. Sakura wrapped her arms around her best friend's neck, clinging to his shoulder as she began to sob loudly. Naruto tightened his hold on her, rubbing his hands up and down her back soothingly, tears of his own falling down his whiskered cheeks. He had already lost one best friend, now he was about to lose the other. It wasn't fair.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"This is a note that you'll need to give to me when I become Hokage."

Sakura's face was expressionless as she tentatively grabbed the note that Tsunade handed to her. The kunoichi felt defeated, weak emotionally, mentally, and physically. But she didn't care if she looked and felt terrible, even with her closest friends behind her to see her departure. Ino, Hinata, Kiba, Shikamaru, surprisingly Choji, Neji, Lee, Tenten, Shino. Naruto. All of Rookie 9. Hell, even the Sand Siblings were there in the office to see her one last time.

The pinkette nodded as her shishou finished giving her instructions. "Sakura." Said kunoichi looked up to see her Hokage standing in front of her. Sakura's jade eyes widened when she was pulled into a warm, heart-felt embrace. "Don't be afraid to cry."

Unbelievingly, Sakura's eyes began to water up again with huge power. She let out a barely contained sob as she wrapped her arms around Tsunade's form and clutched to her shirt.

The other two closest to the pinkette let out a similtanious sob. They clung to each other and fell to the ground, no longer able to contain the tears, even though the male of the two had cried earlier that day.

Sakura eased her grasp on the blonde and looked back at the two, tears staining her flushed cheeks. Seeing Ino and Naruto, of all people, on the floor, hugging each other was a bit comical if not upsetting. Seeing that she was walking toward them, the two slung themselves at her, almost knocking her to her feet. Sakura wrapped her arms around the two and hugged them lovingly.

Soon the three let go and she went around to say her goodbyes to the others. The first that approached her was Hinata. The pinkette pulled the shy girl into a warm embrace. Then Sakura had an idea for what her final words to the female would be. Whispering into her ear, Sakura spoke them, "You should go for it, Hinata. He loves you." When she pulled back, Sakura couldn't help but smile at the red face of the Hyuuga.

"T-thanks Sakura-chan. I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, Hinata."

The next one that approached her was Kiba. The pinkette frowned slightly when he stopped in front of her and ruffled her pink hair. Then she smiled softly when he pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm gonna miss you."

"I'm gonna miss you too. And Akamaru, of course."

He chuckled softly as he ruffled her hair again and went to stand next to Hinata.

Shikamaru lazily made his way to her, grumbling. Sakura continued to smile when he stopped in front of her, looking at the floor and rubbing the back of his neck. Things never change. "This whole thing is so troublesome." he mumbled but then stood up straight and looked Sakura in the eye. "But I'll miss you too."

The pinkette couldn't resist hugging the lazy male as she replied, "I'll miss you too, Shikamaru. Maybe when I go back, I can get you to start getting out of bed earlier."

"I doubt that." he smiled as he hugged her back.

Choji was never particularily close to the pinkette but they embraced nonetheless. Next, was Neji. He stepped in front of her, both staring unblinkingly into each other's eyes for a moment. Sakura smiled widely at the Hyuuga, knowing that he was secretly having a hard time with her departure. He was one of her closest friends, right behind Ino and Naruto. It was a complicated and odd friendship at first but the two eventually grew into it. The pinkette threw herself into his arms, new tears threatening to spill over. She felt Neji return the gesture, wrapping his arms around her like the way he did many times before. "Don't be a stranger." he whispered into her ear. She nodded, automatically knowing what he was talking about. He wanted her to befriend him in the past the way she had done in that time.

"I'll miss you too, Neji." The Hyuuga nodded and barely had time to move out of the way before green flew past him and landed into the pink haired kunoichi.

"Sakuraaa!" the ninja wailed as he knocked her over.

The two landed on the floor, Sakura not at all surprised that it was Lee that knocked her over. He bawled into her short, pink locks as she wrapped her arms lovingly around the taijutsu master. "I'm going to miss you!"

Sakura felt tears run down the side of her face as she replied, "I'll miss you too, Lee."

After a few moments of him releasing watery emotions into her hair, Lee pulled Sakura up and watched as Tenten made her way over to them. The pinkette barely had time to register anything as Tenten embraced her. "I'll miss you, girl. It was fun kicking your ass in training."

"That was an unfair match." Sakura pouted as she embraced the girl back. "But I'll miss getting my ass kicked by you." she smiled.

Tenten pulled back, trying her best to hide her tears. Shino was much like Choji, though the two settled on a firm handshake, Sakura smiling at him the whole time. No words were spoken yet they knew that they would miss each other, just like the rest. Next was Konkuro. He dramatically, though not as dramatic as Lee, wrapped his arms around the pinkette. "Thanks for helping all of us, Sakura. You know I'll miss you."

"It was a pleasure, Konkuro. I'm gonna miss you too."

Temari was next, yet another one that engulfed the pinkette in a bone crushing hug. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sakura wrapped her arms around the blonde, already knowing to what she was refurring to. "Make sure to keep those brothers in line, yeah? Don't want Kankuro scaring off another potential bride for the Kazekage."

Temari let out a hearty laugh and pulled back to look at Sakura, smirking. After she let go, she stepped aside to let Sakura walk up to the stoic redhead. The two stared at each other silently, Sakura searching his eyes for anything, anything at all. And it was there. Smiling, she brought her hand up to touch his cheek. It seemed that he was about to lean into her touch but stopped before anyone could see the slight movement of his head. "Thank you, Gaara." He nodded his head and was slightly surprised when he felt a pare of arms wrap around him. Sakura couldn't help but smile when she felt him embrace her back. Soon enough, they separated and she turned her attention to the window that overlooked the city, finding two more people there to witnest her departure.

Smiling, she made her way to Sai first. She hugged him, catching him off gaurd and making him pat her back awkwardly. She had actually come to like the emotionless prick. "I'm gonna miss you, Sai, even though your an ass."

"Surprisingly, I'll miss you too, Sakura, even though your an ugly bitch."

She laughed softly and turned her attention to her old sensei, letting go of Sai. She stepped in front of Kakashi, smiling sadly. Her smile seemed to brighten however when he pulled an action similar to Kiba's, though without ruffling her hair. He placed a gentle hand on her pink head. His next words, however, caught her slightly off gaurd, "I know you'll do great Sakura. Don't be afraid to make new friends along the way."

The kunoichi stared up at him, taking in his words. Somehow, she knew that they were evolved around Sasuke, to _actually_ become his friend. Smiling, she replied, "Thanks Kakashi-sensei. I'll miss you too."

"Glad you understand." he smiled. Though you couldn't see the smile itself, she could see his eye closing, crinkling with a sad happiness.

"Sakura."

Sakura turned around to see Ino standing near her, fists clenched and staring down at the ground. "What is it, Ino?"

The blonde looked up into Sakura's jade eyes, a fierce determination showing in her blue orbs. "Don't let that boy ruin our friendship."

Sakura stared at her long time best friend, a blank expression on her features until she smiled brightly, "Right."

"Right." Ino nodded, smiling brightly in return.

Sakura turned her attention to the blonde that walked right up next to her, pulling her into another embrace. Sakura complied, embracing him back for the last time. "Don't let Teme get to you, Sakura. Don't be afraid to kick his ass for me either."

The pinkette laughed and turned her attention to Tsunade, releasing herself from the clutches of Naruto.

"Are you ready, Sakura?"

The kunoichi nodded and made her way to stand in front of the Hokage. "You said that once I go, I will never be able to come back."

"That's right." Tsunade nodded solemly. She really didn't want to send Sakura away forever but. . . there was no other choice.

Sakura smiled triumphantly with a new determination and confidence in her eyes, taking all three blondes beside her by surprise. "I'll find a way."

Everyone was shocked by the tone in her voice, especially the Hokage.

"Because _this_," Sakura began, placing her hand on her chest, over her heart, "is my new nindo. My new ninja way."

"S-Sakura." Naruto blanched, his mouth hanging limply as he stared at the kunoichi beside him.

She turned to him, a bright, confident smile on her lips, "I _will_ be back, Naruto. And _he_ will be with us."

Naruto continued to stare at the female for a few moments until finally he let a huge grin cross his lips. "Yeah." he nodded, "I know you won't let us down Sakura."

The pinkette nodded her head and turned her attention back to Tsunade. Smiling, she told the old woman that she would miss her and performed multiple, extremely difficult hand signs in the right order, doing them at different times until she got them perfect. Her smile faltering a bit, she bit her thumb and slammed it into the ground. Her chakra started to diminish drastically as a portal appeared on the ground inches before her. She smiled at Naruto one last time before jumping in, the portal quickly closing behind her.

Once it was fully closed and the room turned into a deathly silence, Tsunade turned her attention the whiskered blonde that was looking at the spot where his best friend once stood. "Do you really believe she will be back?"

Naruto nodded and let out a raspy, "Yeah."

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura clutched onto her shirt and shot up, gasping for air.

"Sakura, dear. What's wrong?"

Her eyes adjusted to the new room she was in. It was her old livingroom back when she lived with her parents. Glancing down, she saw that she was lying down on the couch.

"Sakura, honey. Is something the matter?"

Sakura looked up and was met with the concerned eyes of her mother. Tears threatened to fall as memories flashed through her mind. Horrible memories of her parent's deaths. Shaking her head, she also answered, "No mommy, I'm good." She had to stop herself from widening her eyes. Was that screetchy noise her _voice_?

"Are you sure, honey? It looks like you just lost your best friend."

She couldn't help it, Sakura let out a high-pitched sob. The woman before her had no idea how true those words were.

"Oh Sakura, I'm so sorry."

The pink haired female, now child, calmed down after awhile and so, her and her mother went out to buy groceries. It was infuriating how much shorter Sakura was and how her mother clung to her protectively. Sure, it was nice to know that the woman cared for her, but Sakura had spent the majority of her life being independant. She had developed that attitude during the chuunin exams. Thirteen years ago. . .

Wait, how old was she supposed to be?

"Mommy, how old am I?"

"That's an odd question." her mother laughed.

Sakura pouted and lowered her head toward the ground. That was when she realized, her bangs were in her face. Had she not met Ino yet? That realization made her heart clenched but led her to an estimated age. Just at that moment, a boyish voice caught her attention. Looking up, she spotted a young Sasuke walking next to an older man. Her eyes widened in recognition, that was him. That's Itachi. But how was she supposed to get close to him? 'Befriend him', Tsunade had put it. She could always get close to Sasuke later, her time with the older Uchiha was limited however.

"Hey, brother!" Sasuke yelled cheerily, catching Sakura off gaurd by the intensity of his smile. "You're going to help me with my shuriken today right?"

"If I have time to."

Suddenly a bright idea lit up in Sakura's head. What if she could use Sasuke to get closer to Itachi?

"Hey!" Sakura called, gaining the two Uhihas' attention. "Can I help you with your shurikan?" She smiled happily and tugged on her mother's hand until she let go. Now having the freedom, Sakura slowly ran to the two males, watching the youngest male's reaction.

"No way." Sasuke said.

Sakura frowned, though she was expecting that reaction. "Why not?"

"Because I doubt you're any good at it."

'Ohhh if I only I can wipe that smirk off your face.' she inwardly groaned, knowing that if she hit him, he would most likely die from the blow, even if her strength wasn't fully there, unlike what the blonde had said. Even as a child, he was competitive. Sweet most of the time but still competitive. "Yeah right." Sakura huffed, "You just don't want me there 'cause you know I'll whoop your butt."

Sakura felt oddly satisfied when she saw the youngest Uchiha frown and heard the older one chuckle. "That sounds like a challenge, Sasuke. Surely you wouldn't back down because she's female?" Itachi replied.

'I can grow to like this Uchiha.' Sakura inwardly smiled. He seemed to have an attitude that was right for the world.

Sasuke humphed and crossed his arms, "Fine."

Sakura beamed and turned her attention to the tall Uchiha. "Thanks mister uh-"

"My name is Itachi, young one." he softly smiled. Sakura stared at him, awe-struck at the gentleness that seemed to radiate off of him at that moment. "And yours?"

The pinkette blinked and smiled, "My name's Sakura."

"That's a beautiful name." he said as he made his way to her and placed his hand on her head gently.

Sakura couldn't help but stare at the ground ahead of her, a blush coating her soft cheeks. "Thank you."

Itachi nodded and began to walk away, removing his hand from her. "Come Sasuke."

Sakura was slightly taken aback when she saw Sasuke step in front of her, smiling. "I'll see you at that training ground with the three posts at noon, alright?"

"Alright." she nodded and watched as he ran past her to catch up with his brother.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Noon came around soon enough and Sakura stood in the empty field next to the three posts. Her arms were crossed over her chest and her foot was tapping on the grass impatiently. But as she looked at a specific spot, her heart began to clench tightly as memories of that same day replayed in her mind.

"Naruto." she whispered into the wind.

"What about Naruto?"

Her body tensed up when the voice of Sasuke spoke behind her. Damnit, she couldn't sense him. But then again, that was to be expected. She might still have her strength, well as much as she could get of it with the body of a child, but she hardly had any chakra.

"Nothing." she replied, looking up and strangely saw Itachi looking intently at her. Why was he staring at her? Did she do something wierd? Was something on her face? That was when she noticed it. She was crying. Before Sasuke had time to walk around to look at her, she quickly swiped the tears away. Taking two shurikan from the young Uchiha, she made a mental note to search around for Naruto afterward.

The two threw the shurikan at the expecting posts for about a hour until the young male got tired. She sprawled herself on the ground, breathing heavyily, though it was all an act. She really wasn't that tired. She would have to thank Tsunade for letting her keep her stamina when she found a way back. Turning her head to look at the boy laying down, she began to think. He really wasn't that bad with the shurikan for a child his age, though he could use a good bit of training. To be expected. She glanced up at the Uchiha's brother leaning against a tree. Itachi had witnessed the whole thing since they began, watching carefully. Sakura could feel his eyes on her for the majority of the time, seemingly more interested in her work than his own brother's. The longer she stared into his eyes, the more she could see. He was probably letting his gaurd down since he believed that the two were too young and he wouldn't have to worry.

Hearing the even breathing of Sasuke beside her, she believed him to be asleep, so she pushed herself up and made her way to the older male. She stopped in front of him, both staring at each other silently, jade gazing into onyx. The wind blew between them, leaves flowing in the comfortable breeze.

"You are an odd one."

Sakura blinked in surprise. "W-what? Why do you say that?"

"First you challenge my brother, exhausting him until he passes out, then you easily come before me without hesitation as if you are my equal."

A blush coated Sakura's cheeks. It was all true. She did just waltz up to him without a problem, even though he was very itimidating looking at times and she barely made it up to his hips. She adverted her eyes from his very observant gaze, trying to find something to say. "Y-you just," she stuttered, making her feel a little like Hinata, "you look lonely."

Itachi was a bit surprised at the child before him. "What are you talking about?"

Sakura looked back up to meet the stoic man's gaze. "Its okay if you talk to someone, you know?"

"What about you?"

Her jade eyes widened a fraction. "What?"

"Why won't you talk to anyone?"

Sakura looked away. This man was more clever than he was letting on. She would have to be careful. "I," she paused, "I haven't found anybody I can trust yet."

"Hn." Itachi replied, looking over at his slumbering brother. "It is the same with me."

Sakura was shocked to say the least. "Not even your brother?"

"He is far too young."

"And you don't want him to worry." Sakura mumbled, looking over at Sasuke as well. Silence fell between the two and the pinkette could feel eyes on her. Turning her head, her face flushed with the sight. Itachi was smiling warmly, yet softly at her and it made her chest flutter.

"You're a bright one."

"Thanks." she smiled, pride flooding through her. "But what about me?"

"You?" he questioned, his face going back into a stoic disposition.

Sakura frowned, not liking his response. "That sounded really rude, you know?"

Itachi let out a quiet chuckle.

Putting a hand to her chest, she pouted, "I happen to be a very good listener. If you ever want someone to talk to, you can always come to me."

Itachi smirked at the fiery child before him. "Tempting but I have to decline."

Sakura frowned, slumping her shoulders in defeat. "Alright, I'll let you go this time but I warn you," She put her hand on her hip and pointed her index finger at his chest. "I won't give up once I set my sights on something that I like." The words left her before she knew it and she let out a yelp as she covered her mouth with both hands. She blushed fiercely as the Uchiha stared at her, obviously surprised. Embarressment echoed in her ears when he began to chuckle at her. 'Damnit, I just _had_ to say something like that.'

"I suppose I'll humor you." he smirked.

The blush slowly began to wear off as bewilderment took over. "Really?"

"Yes, whenever I wish to talk to someone, you will be the first person I look for."

Sakura smiled brightly at the man before her. Day one and it was already off to a good start. "Promise?"

The young man nodded his consent, finding amusement in the child before him.

After that, Sasuke woke up, rubbing his eyes and grumbling. Sakura let out a small laugh at the sight of him. He frowned at her as he made his way to the duo. "You two look weird standing next to each other."

Sakura frowned, "You just look plain weird." Sasuke frowned deeply at her.

Itachi couldn't help but silently laugh at the two children now glaring at each other, Sakura soon sticking her tongue out at his younger brother. "Shall we take you home, Sakura?"

The pinkette glanced up at the man and shook her head, a smile on her features. "No, that's alright. I have to go look for someone."

"Is it Naruto?"

Sakura's eyes widened a fragment as she turned her attention back to the youngest Uchiha. "Yeah, do you know where he is?"

"Last I saw him, he was alone by the academy." he replied, raising an eyebrow at her.

"That boy." Sakura blinked and looked back up at Itachi. She could see a hint of seriousness in his features. "Why do you wish to speak with him?"

Her eyes slightly narrowed at him, showing a smidge of the older side to the child. "Do you not like him as well?"

Itachi's eyes widened at the small girl but then returned to his earlier expression. "I have no qualms with the boy, I am just curious to your reason."

Silence fell between them as Sakura's face blankly stared at the man before she answered, "His eyes." she paused, "His eyes are just like yours and yet, they are worse ." Sakura didn't wait for a reply and didn't really expect one when she began to walk off toward the village.

It wasn't long until she came to the academy, and true to Sasuke's word, Naruto was there. His body was slumped over as he sat completely still in the swing. He looked so lonely and instantly, concern filled Sakura as she rushed over to him. Her foots fell hurriedly on the ground and soon stopped in front of him. Sakura looked down at the boy that lonliness seemed to cling to. His eyes were covered by his bangs as he stared down at the ground. The pinkette wanted nothing more than to hug him, but she couldn't do that yet. Not yet.

"Naruto?"

His body tensed but he didn't look up. "What?"

The tone in his voice made her want to cry. It was so depressing, so lonely. She honestly didn't know how to go about this. Should she even be here? Tsunade never told her anything about befriending Naruto earlier than usual. In fact, she only said something about getting close to Itachi and Sasuke. So maybe it wouldn't hurt if she just-

The look in Naruto's blue eyes as he looked up made Sakura's resolve crash. Tears fell from her eyes as she wrapped her arms around the sorrowful boy. He was obviously stunned by her actions because he didn't move an inch.

"Naruto." Sakura cried, "I'm so sorry." She apologized for how she used to act toward him, with such disdain, with such ignorance. She apologized for how she acted in her past, like he was nothing, like he wasn't worth the time of day to her. She apologized for how everyone treated him, like a freak, and how they used to downgrade and misjudge him.

"S-Sakura?"

"Yeah. Its me, Naruto." she cried, nuzzling her head in his shoulder.

"B-but-"

"I'm sorry for everything Naruto."

"W-why are you here?"

"Because I realized how lonely you really are and I want to be your friend."

Naruto didn't say anything else, just stared wide-eyed at the academy before his eyes.

"Please, Naruto." she whispered next to his ear, tears falling from her eyes. "Please be my friend."

"But why, don't you hate me like everyone else?"

"I don't hate you, Naruto. I never hated you and never will."

The blonde clentched his teeth, not willing to quite believe that someone had come to him and was asking to be his friend. But at the moment, he really couldn't care. He wrapped his arms around the female and buried his head into her shoulder, tears of his own falling down.

Sakura knew that was his answer and she was grateful that he accepted her. She listened to his quiet sobs as she ran her fingers through his blonde hair. At the moment, she felt as if she was doing something right for her best friend for the first time. Then, Sakura remembered something. She should bring it up now before it got too late.

"Hey Naruto."

"What is it?" he asked, his voice muffled through her shirt.

"Don't go getting a crush on me later, okay? I still think boys are gross."

Sakura felt wonderfully content when she felt the boy smile against her shoulder. She had no doubt that the people walking past that could see the scene were staring and saying crude remarks but she didn't care. At the moment, all that mattered to Sakura was Naruto.

"Do you want to go home or stay with me and walk around?" she asked, still playing with his blonde and surprisingly soft locks.

"I want to stay with you."

"Alright." Sakura nodded, fully knowing that the blonde would now be stuck with her until further notice. Thinking about it made her wonder about another certain blonde. Ino. . . Would she accept her friendship even though she was friends with Naruto now? It shouldn't be too difficult since the only reason why they became rivals was because of Sasuke. The pinkette no longer held feelings for him so that wouldn't be a problem.

"I know I'm comfy Naruto, but if we're going to walk around, you have to let me go." Sakura smiled lovingly at the blonde as he nodded and pulled back. The female pulled back as well and wiped at her dry tears as Naruto did the same. She stepped a few feet back and held out her hand for the blonde to take. He shyly did so, almost afraid that she would snatch it back and run off. Sakura patiently waited until he grasped it and she started tugging him along.

"Where are we going, Sakura?"

"I don't know." she laughed, but she kept walking, hand in hand with the blonde boy next to her. A feeling a warmth flooded through her as she looked at the small smile on his face but quickly disappeared when adults walked passed, snearing at them. Sakura set her finest glare on her face as she looked up at the adults. Her expression seemed to frighten them a fraction as they stepped back away from them, gasping.

Looking back at the solemn blonde, she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. His blue eyes looked up to meet her jade ones, surprise evident in them. Sakura smiled at him in return as they continued to walk down the street.

"Sakura!" a female voice yelled from behind her. Her body tensed as she froze, Naruto stopping beside her. She turned around to see her mother running up to her. "I thought you said you were going to train with Sasuke!"

'Damnit.' "I did."

"Then why aren't you with them? And why are you with _him_?" her mother questioned, narrowing her eyes at the boy as she stopped in front of them.

Sakura could feel Naruto wanting to retreat as his grip on her hand loosened but she tightened her hold, not relenting. Anger bubbled through her veins as she glared at the woman before her. She might've been Sakura's mother, but the pinkette be damned if she let her talk negatively about her best friend.

"I found him alone when I was walking home and now he is my friend."

Sakura's mother seemed taken aback by her daughter's glare and tone. Looking at her, she suddenly knew that she wasn't going to win. So she sighed and motioned for her to follow, "Come on then."

Sakura smiled brightly and turned her attention back to Naruto. What she saw made her frown instantly. His head was turned down as his eyes were covered by his bangs.

"Naruto, we can go home." Sakura spoke, placing her hand gently on his cheek. He looked up into her eyes, shock on his face as if about to ask 'What?'. She removed her hand from his cheek and nudged him to follow her. "Come on." Her smile returned when he slowly nodded.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Once back at her home, Sakura sat on the couch, Naruto following her, albeit a bit tense. She watched the boy beside her, jade searching blue. He stared at the floor, neither moving nor speaking. Out of the corner of her eye, Sakura saw her mother standing still, watching the two. The pinkette watched as Naruto's brows furrowed and his frown deepened. The distraught look on his face made Sakura want to cry all over again. Naruto was always one of her weak spots, always one of the people that affected her the most. She suprised everyone in the room when she wrapped her arms around the boy and pulled him to her.

"Its alright, Naruto. You can cry if you want to."

Sakura softly smiled and started soothing the blonde hair when the boy sunk into her arms and let out a soft sob. She could feel her mother continuing to stare at them but she didn't care.

"Sakura, honey?"

Said child continued to soothe the blonde bundle as she looked up at her mother, surprised by the gentle smile on the woman's lips. "What would you and your friend like for dinner?"

The pinkette smiled brightly, already knowing the answer. "Ramen with extra beef."

The woman nodded and made her way into the kitchen, preparing the food requested. Sakura looked back down at Naruto, his sobs turning into soft sniffles.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Time flew by, the three ate in silence, a small tension in the air, although it was broken when Sakura requested that Naruto stay with them. Her mother had looked at her like she was insane but soon gave in when the pinkette stated that he didn't live with anybody else and couldn't properly take care of himself.

Weeks flew by, Naruto now living with the Haruno's and sleeping on the couch. Sakura's mother had surprisingly grown a liking to the young boy. He was pleasing to be around when he wasn't causing trouble. Sakura also seemed to be able to handle him perfectly, her mother noticed. The two could actually be in the same room without Sakura, it was so well and calm between them that they got along. He was also starting to walk around the house by himself. Though he was never a really shy boy, he always seemed to shadow Sakura everywhere.

It was one of those times that Naruto was conversating with Sakura's mom while Sakura was away. The pinkette walked down the streets of Konoha, adults and children giving her odd looks while she walked passed them. Surprisingly, she ran into the one person she was excited to see.

"Hey Itachi." she smiled brightly, running up to him.

"Hello Sakura." The female's smile brightened when he placed a hand on her pink head. "I hear that Naruto's staying with you and your family."

"Yeah." she nodded, "It seems Mom likes him. Dad is still kinda iffy about the idea."

"I'd imagine so."

Sakura frowned at that. "Naruto's a good kid, he really is."

Itachi nodded at her and that seemed to satisfy her as her frown disappeared. "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

"Oh you know, this and that."

He raised an eyebrow at her, obviously thinking that she was up to no good, which wasn't far from the truth.

"Anyway," she brightened up, "so do you wanna talk now? That's why we ran into each other! Because you're supposed to talk to me today."

He stared at her for a moment until letting out a soft sigh and nodding. "Alright."

The pinkette grabbed the hand on her head and gently started to pull her along. "Let's go then. We can't have other people listening in."

Sakura felt a feeling of warmth spreadthrough her as she held his hand. She was actually surprised that Itachi allowed her to drag him along, all the way to the training grounds. She let go of his hand and sat down near a tree, watching as he sat down and leaned up against it.

"So, where do you wanna start?" Sakura asked, eyeing the male before her as she crossed her legs in front of her.

"I'm really not sure."

The pinkette had to resist the urge to groan. This was going to be difficult. "Umm, alright, you can start out with what's bothering you."

"First, tell me why you're so focused on hearing my troubles."

"Because," Sakura mumbled, "you look like you could use someone to talk to and it looks like I'm the only one that noticed."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

Itachi put his head on the tree behind him, looking up at the stars through the leaves. "You are the only one that noticed."

"I promise I won't tell anyone anything if you promise that you won't tell Sasuke I was with you."

"Sasuke?" Itachi raised an eyebrow at her in question.

"Yeah, I don't want him to know." She had her reasons of course. She knew that Itachi would end up killing his family no matter what and if Sasuke knew that Sakura had details about the event, he would be up her ass with questions and demands.

The Uchiha stared at her for a moment until nodding, "As you wish."

Sakura smiled and nodded her head, pink bangs flying around her eyes as she looked at the man.

"Are you sure you want to listen to a person like me?"

"Yep." she chirped in reply.

"Very well." he sighed.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Itachiii!" Sakura sang as she ran up to the male, a blonde child in tow.

The Uchiha stopped in his tracks, turning around to look at the two children running toward him. The one with blonde hair he recognized as Naruto. "Sakura."

The pinkette stopped in front of the tall man, smiling brightly up at him. She noticed movement behind the man and spotted Sasuke. Smiling at the young male, she spoke, "Hey Sasuke."

"Hi Sakura." he spoke gently.

"What's wrong?" she frowned, "You _still_ upset that I'm better than you at throwing shurikan?"

"What?" he shouted, "No way."

Sakura laughed as she glanced back at Naruto, noting that he was strangely quiet. Looking into his eyes, she understood why. He was glaring at Sasuke. The pinkette couldn't help but feel a sense of familiarility at the situation. Even as children, Naruto felt inferior to Sasuke. For years, he had to listen to his classmates talk about the Uchiha, praising him while he was ignored or insulted. Sighing, she turned her attention back to Itachi, giving him a warm smile as she grasped Naruto's hand. Pulling him along before any arguments started, she waved at them with her free hand. "Bye bye, you two."

The two Uchiha's watched as Sakura pulled Naruto along with her. "Since when are they so friendly with each other?" Sasuke asked, narrowing his eyes at the blonde.

"Jealous brother?"

"As if."

Itachi chuckled under his breath as he continued on his way, Sasuke walking beside him.

Please review what you think so far :)


	2. Inviting in Trouble

*I've noticed that my scene changes aren't separated like they're supposed to be. I apologize for any confusion that may have caused so I went back and made it clearer that the scene changes.

Chapter 2: Inviting in Trouble

Many months flew by and Sakura was satisfied with the rate she was going. She had dug herself into Itachi, gaining a sufficiant amount of information out of him when he was at his lowest. True, she was doing it for Konoha but she was also doing it as a friend, something she had the priviledge of calling herself after so much time. She had learned that the Uchiha actually cared for his family deeply and that he looked up to Konoha, admiring the history of it. Sakura had also noted that Itachi was wiser than most of the people his age. He also had a good handle on his emotions with strangers, only letting them out with the ones closest to him, in other words, his family, friends, and Sakura. She had seen him truly smile and laugh and it brought a blush to her cheeks everytime. She guessed that he only acted stoic sometimes was because he kept his gaurd up. After finding out about his family and the true abilities of the Sharingan, Sakura figured Itachi wanted to be cautious at all times.

Sakura had listened intently everytime Itachi confineded in her, thoughts and conclusions running through her mind. She found out that the family members killed each other to gain the Mangenkyou Sharingan and that the clan was possibly becoming a threat to Konoha. She learned a great deal from the Uchiha and she was starting to realize that the elders would soon want the clan to be wiped out. Why couldn't anyone see this coming? Why didn't she or Tsunade figure this out sooner?

The pinkette walked down the streets as she clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. Death. It filled the air with it's horrid stench and it seemed to be getting closer to her with each passing second. She could recongize the smell anywhere, she used to be around it all day long when she was a medic yet she could never get used to it. Especially not to this degree. The stench seemed to be surrounding her, worming it's way into her body until slowly taking over her lungs. Then suddenly, the worst of it stopped behind her.

"Sakura."

Her body trembled as she turned around and saw Itachi standing behind her. Though his clothes seemed spotless, she could just imagine the evidence of his family seeping through it. "Itachi." she whispered, her hands shaking. "You reak of blood."

He seemed surprised for a moment until his eyes turned into an emotionless gaze. "I don't know who you really are." Sakura gaped at the man, her eyes wide and her jaw slack. "No child could possibly have the maturity and understanding that your eyes posess." he continued, "Nonetheless, I wish to ask you a favor."

Sakura regained her ability to think after he said those words and nodded.

"Watch over Sasuke."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at his request and nodded her head once again. That was the other point of this mission. To make sure that Sasuke wouldn't turn his back on the village and then start a huge war with them. "Itachi."

"What is it?"

The pinkette stared at the young man for a moment or two, contemplating on what she would do next. "Be careful."

Yet again, surprise crossed his features until smiling softly at the child before him. Nodding, he made his way passed her.

"He's in good hands."

"I know." he whispered just barely loud enough for the female to hear him.

Once he was out of sight, Sakura took off, knowing the first place that she would look for the younger Uchiha. She eventually found him in one of the houses in the Uchiha district, passed out on the floor with tears in his eyes. Sighing, she gently moved him and pulled him onto her back, careful not to wake him. She pulled his arms over her shoulders and placed her arms under him as she started to walk again. The sight of dead bodies was nothing new to her so it was no trouble as she walked passed the corpses of the young boy's family members. She could feel tears starting to soak her shirt above her shoulder and it brought a strange sort of pain to her chest. Was it pity? Or was it guilt? Or maybe it was both? She didn't know.

"Itachi." the distraught boy whined in her ear, making Sakura frown.

The whole way to her house, Sakura kept getting odd looks but she disregarded them, continuing to walk. Once she made it to her front door, she knocked on it. Loud footsteps could be heard walking toward her and she automatically knew that it was Naruto. Sakura took a few steps back and awaited for the loud, "Sakuraaa!"

She crinched at the blonde's loudness and put a finger to her lips as she narrowed her eyes at him. He blinked at the scene for a moment until his face changed to shock. "W-what are you doing? Is that Sasuke?!"

"Naruto, shush." Sakura frowned, "You'll wake him up."

Naruto frowned at her tone but shut his mouth nonetheless and moved out of the way so she could walk in. She moved carefully into her house, stopping in the livingroom to lay the dark haired bundle down on the couch. Hearing Naruto walking up to stand next to her, she softly spoke, "I'm not the one that can tell you what happened, Naruto. Its Sasuke's choice if he wants you to know or not."

Naruto nodded in understanding, one of those rare moments when he was suddenly understanding.

"What do you kids want for din-"

Sakura turned around to see her mother staring at the scene before her, namely at the Uchiha sleeping on the couch, which just happened to have blood on him, now that Sakura looked. "What's this boy doing here, Sakura? And why does he have blood on him?"

"I-um-uh. . ."

"I'll go get a wash cloth and you better explain to me what happened, young lady."

Sakura's face fell, "Yes ma'am."

Her mother left the room and her father walked in to see the male on the couch, a curious look on his face. "You sure do have a habit of bringing in strange boys, Sakura."

The pinkette smiled brightly at her father. After a moment of silence, her mother came back with a warm, wet rag and started to wipe at the young boy's face. "How did you find him, Sakura?"

"He was passed out when I found him." Sakura looked away and at the ground, a defeated look on her face. "I can't tell you anything else, I'm sorry. Sasuke has to tell you, if he wants to."

Her parents nodded in understanding. Sakura glanced over at Naruto and saw that his fists were clenched. Was he angry? Upset?

"Sakura, honey?"

"Yes mom?"

"Is it alright if your friend sleeps in your room? I'm afraid that the noise down here will wake him."

"Alright, but I won't be able to carry him up the stairs."

"I'll take care of that."

Sakura followed her father as he picked Sasuke up and made their way up the stairs and into her room. She watched as he placed the child down on her bed and made his way back to her door. As he walked passed her, Sakura spoke, "Hey dad?"

"What is it?"

"It looked like Naruto's upset about this. Could you maybe talk to him about it and see what's wrong?"

"Sure thing."

"Thank you."

Sakura heard the door shut behind her as she made her way over to her bed, staring at the form that slept on it. Her heart felt frozen over as tears continued to run down his cheeks. It was odd, seeing Sasuke cry. It was so different from seeing the cold and stoic Sasuke she used to know. Instead of seeing the hatred and anger, she saw pain and fear stretched across his features while he slept. And she couldn't help but wonder, how would he turn out? Would he turn out just as cold and detatched as he did before? Or would he let others in to help him? She hoped so, for more than one reason. Firstly, the mission that held Konoha's future at stake and secondly, she couldn't handle another betrayal from the Uchiha. For one of her best friends to leave yet again, after losing everyone else, she couldn't do it. Yet, even though she didn't want to lose him, she didn't feel the need to cry as she watched him. She didn't feel love as he slept. She didn't feel remorse as he cried. What she felt was a sense of emptiness and she didn't know why. What would she feel when he woke up? Only time would answer her questions. For now, she sighed and sat down on the floor, waiting patiently for the boy to awaken.

Hours flew by and Sakura was starting to get impatient. Finally, she watched as his eyes started to flutter open. The pinkette let out a sigh when he reached his hand up and laid his palm on his forehead, no doubt reliving the memories of what he saw.

"So you're finally awake."

His body tensed as he snapped his head in her direction. The look of shock on his face would've made her laugh if the situation wasn't so serious. They stared at each other for what felt like minutes when it was only seconds.

"Where am I?"

"You're at my house, in my room, and on my bed."

Sasuke looked down at the covers that were cluched in his grasp and let go as if it burned him.

"Are you hungry?"

"No."

Sakura stood up and stretched, her muscles feeling crramped from sitting in the same spot for too long. Normally, she wouldn't sit still like that for so long but she had to make sure that he didn't wake up while she was walking around and run off. Walking over to her door, she opened it and called out while never breaking eye contact with him, "Hey mom! He's awake now so can you bring the food up?"

"Alright!" she heard her mother reply from downstairs.

"I told you I wasn't hungry."

"Of course you aren't but if you don't eat then you'll starve yourself." she replied, narrowing her eyes at him. She remembered those days clearly. Right after his family was killed, he had gone through a serious stage of depression, refusing to eat or speak to anyone. It had taken mulitiple adults to get him to eat while they were at the academy. Yet, even though he started to gain his weight back, he still refused to talk to anyone. She wouldn't let him do that this time around. He would accept her if it was the last thing he did.

They stared at each other, neither relenting to the other, as her mother came up the stairs with two bowls of warm miso soup. She gave Sakura a smile as she placed them on the desk. "There you are honey. I'll just leave you two so you can eat." her mother spoke as she made her way back to the door. Turning back around, she met Sakura's gaze. "Oh, and Naruto says he's fine but doesn't feel right at the moment."

Sakura nodded, "Alright, thanks mom." The pinkette could understand where the blonde was coming from after all.

"You're welcome, dear." her mother spoke before retreating the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Naruto's here?"

Sakura stood up and grabbed a bowl and went over to the bed, handing it to him. He reluctantly took it as she replied, "Yeah. He's been living with me for months now. I'm surprised you didn't know."

She made her way back over to her desk and sat down at the chair next to it, grabbing the other bowl and placing it in front of her.

"How did I get here?" he asked softly.

"I brought you here three hours ago."

"But what abo-"

Sakura glanced up at him, her expression serious as she stopped him but cutting him off, "Its best you don't talk about it for now, Sasuke. Eat, rest, and we'll talk about it in the morning."

Sasuke nodded, his face weak and covered with a dreadful sorrow. Sakura nodded in return, "You're gonna have to sleep in here tonight though, sorry."

This made his frown deepen, "Why?"

"Because." she shrugged, "We have no more room and Naruto already hogs the couch as it is. So I doubt you wanna sleep with him." The pinkette smiled when the Uchiha let a grimace cross his sad features. "Eat Sasuke."

The two sat in silence for what felt like hours as they ate. Sakura finished first and decided to watch the Uchiha as he slowly ate his. His eyes were glazed over in thought as he slowly brought the bowl to his lips. She stared at him intently as he finished. She stood and extended her hand to grab the bowl from him. After he handed it over, she placed it on the desk on top of hers.

"Where are you going to sleep?"

Sakura turned around to raise a questioning eyebrow at him. "In here. Where else?"

"But, your bed."

"Its fine, I can sleep on the floor."

"No, Sakura."

She narrowed her eyes at him as she went over to sit against the wall under her window. She wasn't about to take any chances of him leaving to seek solitude. And if he decided to go through the door, he would no doubt wake someone and all three of them were on her side, saying that if they saw him, they would stop him. Until morning came along, she would watch him. Her eyes narrowed further when he made a move to get up.

"Sasuke. I am fine down here, get back in bed."

He didn't seem to like the tone in her voice as he narrowed his eyes at her in return. "No."

They continued to stare at each other, both unblinking until Sakura finally relented, sighing as she closed her eyes and looked down. She could mentally see the Uchiha relaxing a bit and when she looked up to meet his eyes, it seemed so. "Alright, fine but I'm still not sleeping on it and you're still not leaving this room."

He didn't appear to like this reply either if his deepening frown was any indication, but he nodded nonetheless. Sakura stood up and made her way to her red covered bed, snatching the cover, sheet, and pillows off of it. She could feel the male's eyes on her as she spread the cover out on the floor and then the pillows at the top. She laid out the sheet on the top as she gently spoke, "It shouldn't be too cold tonight so we can use the sheet to cover up with."

She turned around to see Sasuke nodding at her. Her small hands pulled back the sheet and she crawled in the small bed that was made, her pink locks falling against one of the pillows. She could practically feel the nervousness flowing through him as he stepped closer. The pinkette yawned into her palm as she watched Sasuke crawl into the bed, though as far away from her as he could be. The thought made her want to smirk but she restrained herself.

"You don't have to worry about me doing anything to you, Sasuke. I'm not like those girls who chase after you and try to hug you." she smiled as he stared back at her.

"So you noticed that, huh?"

"Yeah." she nodded, "Its annoying really." 'And to think that his fanclub grew tenfold when he became detached.' she thought unbelievingly to herself.

"Yeah it is, especially when they don't care about getting to know me."

Sakura watched silently as he said those words. She was once like that. Before she had started going on missions with Team Kakashi, she never tried to know who he really was. She searched his onyx eyes as he stared back at her. She knew that he would most likely have nightmares that night and she was prepared for that. The young boy would be haunted with memories of his family for years, but would she be there to help him get passed it? Itachi wanted him to get stronger but hate wasn't the real answer. Hate and revenge would only get him so far. The differences between him and Naruto because of that fact was astounding. Even without the Kyuubi, Sakura had no doubt that Naruto still would've surpassed the Uchiha eventually.

Memories flashed through her mind, all the times that her, Sasuke, and Naruto shared together. All the fun times they had and even the hard times. She remembered that promise Naruto made her about bringing Sasuke back but was never able to. She didn't hold it against him though, they would bring Sasuke back. She remembered the first day that they were together as a team, the way she kept getting in the way. She had to resist the urge of clenching her teeth at those specific memories. As soon as she was able to obtain a sufficiant amount of chakra, she would have to start training again. Hopefully she could obtain enough to work on her healing chakra. She felt useless, empty without that ability and was painfully reminded each time when Naruto got hurt that she couldn't do it.

Sakura let go of her thoughts when she heard soft, even breathing. She blinked and focused her eyes, her gaze falling on the peaceful face of the child beside her. Yawning again, Sakura closed her eyes and willed sleep to take over her.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

The next day, her parents went to the Hokage's office and requested that the Uchiha live in an apartment. The old man complied and soon Sasuke was off to live on his own. After a year of living there, he was still taking everythig pretty hard, as to be expected and whenever Sakura would visit him, she would find a few holes in the walls here and there. She sometimes brought Naruto to visit him but the visits never ended pretty well so Sakura would usually have to take a furious Naruto back home. It seemed that Sasuke was starting to develop his detached personality all over again, much to Sakura's displeasure.

The pinkette knocked on the young male's door, a bag full of fresh produce on her back. She heard soft footsteps making their way toward the door until finally opening it. Calm jade met irritated onyx. "What do you want, Sakura? I'm busy."

Sakura frowned, "You can take a few minutes off of your wall pounding for me to come in, can't you?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her for a moment until a sigh escaped him. He stepped aside and gestured with his arm for her to come in.

"Thank you." she said as she stepped into the small apartment, Sasuke closing the door behind her. Sakura placed her bag down on the black, plush sofa he had in his livingroom, with a t.v. facing it a few yards away. It was a small but nice living space.

"More stuff from your mom?"

"Yeah." Sakura nodded, taking out the few items that weren't food and began to walk over to the kitchen to stick the rest in the fridge before it spoiled from the heat.

She heard Sasuke step into the kitchen and she could picture him leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed. "You don't have to keep putting the food away."

She couldn't help but smirk at his comment, "I've been doing this for a year and _now_ you say something about it?" She could hear a grunt for his response and continued to stack the produce in the fridge, all the while checking the food that she left there last week. "So you've been eating properly?"

"Of course."

The pinkette smiled at his snarky reply. She was glad that he wasn't starving himself like he did last time. Though she noticed that he barely talked to anyone other than her and when he argued with Naruto, he was slowly getting better with each passing day.

"Why do you keep coming back here, Sakura?"

Sakura's eyes blinked in surprise for a moment until she turned and looked at the young male. He was, in fact, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed, a stoic look on his features. "Why wouldn't I?"

He shrugged in response, staring intently at her as she went back to unloading her bag and stuffing his fridge. Finally finished, Sakura closed her bag and stood up, throwing her now empty pack over her shoulder. "It was nice seeing you again, Sasuke." she smiled.

"Yeah." he nodded and she knew that that was his way of saying that it was good to see her too.

Smiling brightly at him, she turned to walk out. Right as she made it passed him, she felt a hand gripping her wrist. Turning her face, she watched silently as he stared at her. Silence fell between the two for a moment before he removed his hand and spoke softly, "Thank you."

Sakura was absolutely startled at first, her features clearly showing her shock until she genuinely smiled at him. "You're welcome."

With those two sentences said, she left his apartment and headed home, mentally preparing herself for a headache from Naruto's constant badgering.

Please review :)


	3. Back to Being Genin

Thank all you wonderful people for the reviews, I greatly appreciate them and I'm glad you like the story :) I thought about the request for adding more of Sasuke's p.o.v into the story and I think thats a really good idea for many reasons. I'll try my best to add his point of view into the story to add more detail into the plot. Thanks again for the reviews :)

*I've noticed that my scene changes aren't separated like they're supposed to be. I apologize for any confusion that may have caused so I went back and made it clearer that the scene changes.

Chapter 3: Back to Being Genin

Many more years passed and not much changed, except Sakura's stress level. She had gotten Sasuke to open up more and he was more talkative but he still had that cold, cocky, arrogant attitude that girls seemed to flock to. It was irritating and tiring, even for Sakura. Ever since his fanclub found out about her being closer to him than anybody else, they flocked to her like birds as well, some admiring her, others. . . saying not so pretty, threatening words that were capable of children their age. They didn't intimidate her however. Although, her most interesting encounter was when Ino had approached her. Instantly, the pink haired female wanted to wrap her arms around the blonde and embrace her tightly, but she restrained herself.

The blonde asked if everything she heard about her and Sasuke were true. Sakura had replied, saying that she was, indeed, friends with him but nothing more and that she had no feelings for him. Ino had looked at her skeptically. Then Sakura smiled brightly at her and stated that if she wanted proof then she should go ask Sasuke himself. Ino had done so soon enough and was satisfied with the answer she had recieved, quickly becoming one of Sakura's closest friends. Again.

Over the years, Sakura had managed to build up her chakra to a surprising level. She even possessed the ability for her to heal all of her wounds and still have over half of her chakra left. She couldn't wait to be able to lift the seal that held in all of her chakra from the future. Just the thought of being able to fight at full strength made her giddy, goosebumps riding all over her body in anticipation.

And what was even better was that today was the day where the teams for the genin were picked out. The pinkette had complete confidence that the teams would be picked out the way that they were last time and she was excited to meet Kakashi again. Heading downstairs, she excitedly ate breakfast with her parents and Naruto, eager to get going. And it seemed Naruto was excited as well.

The time flew by quickly, though not quicky enough for Sakura, and she and Naruto made their way to the academy. She wrestled through the door with the blonde, both shoving each other to see who would get through the door first. Sakura relented at the last second and laughed when Naruto pushed through and landed face first into the ground, groaning in pain. Stepping over him, she made her way forward, ignoring the stares that people casted toward her and Naruto's way. Smiling, she spotted Sasuke sitting at a table by himself. The pinkette didn't even bother to ask as she slid in next to him.

"Causing trouble as always I see." his smooth, calm voice spoke without turning his head to look at her.

Sakura shrugged and looked around at the numerous people staring at her. She arched an eyebrow at them but didn't say anything.

"Hey Sakura!" Naruto yelled, standing on the desk in front of her. The loudness of his voice made the the pinkette and the male next to her cringe. "Why are you sitting next to Sasuke?"

"Got a problem, loser?" the dark haired male asked, glaring at the blonde haired male.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the Uchiha and made his way over to him, crouching on the desk before him as they glared at each other. Sakura blinked at the familar scene, trying to remember what happened next, until realization dawned on her. "Ugh, Naruto. Maybe you should mo-"

But it was too late. Sakura held in a laugh as the whole room gasped. The guy behind Naruto had knudged him and had knocked the blonde into Sasuke, leading them to share an awkward and unwanted kiss. The first time she saw it was shocking but now that she was witnessing it again, it was hilarious. As the two separated, gagging, Sakura couldn't hold it in any longer, letting out a loud, contagious laughter as the female behind her started giggling.

"I guess this is why you said you and Sasuke don't having anything going, huh Sakura?" laughed Ino.

Sakura's laughter surprisingly grew louder as her head fell back in mirth, tears threatening to pool out of her eyes.

"Sakura." she heard two voices speak beside her, making her abrutly stop and look at the two frowning next to her.

She let an innocent smile cross her features as she glanced between the two. "Yes?"

"It wasn't funny!" the two shouted in unison, making the pinkette retreat a little at the intensity of their voices, but on the inside she was filled with mirth and content. Two feelings that had long escaped her. Snickering, she turned her attention to the front of the class as Iruka walked in.

"Naruto, sit down." he spoke, smirking at the sight before him.

The blonde huffed and jumped on the other side of Sakura, his arms crossed over his chest and his face set in a pout.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

As expected, everyone had made it into their original teams and at the moment, the three were left waiting for Kakashi to show up. Sakura sat on top of the desk at the front, her leg swinging back and forth, patiently waiting for their sensei to show up. She was overly excited but she had learned to be patient with the silver haired man a _long_ time ago. There was something else eating at her skin though, she wasn't sure if she would accidently cry or not at finally seeing him again. Yawning into her palm, Sakura tilted her gaze to see her blonde best friend huffing. The female inwardly smirked, knowing what was going to happen next.

"I can't believe he's this late." Naruto grumbled under his breath.

The two others watched as Naruto grabbed a stool and an eraser, placing it at the top of the doorway so that if anyone walked through it, the eraser would fall on their head.

"This guy's supposed to be a jounin, right? Do you really think he's going to fall for something like that?"

At that moment, Sakura smirked as she watched Kakashi's head peak through the doorway, the eraser falling onto his silver naps. Her and Naruto busted out laughing as Sasuke looked incrediously at the man.

"If I had to describe this group," Kakashi began, gaining everyone's attention. "You're a bunch of idiots." The three genin's shoulders slumped in defeat. Even though Sakura was fully expecting it, it never felt good to be called an idiot by her second favorite sensei.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Soon the introductions began, Kakashi going first after Sakura asking him to. The three listened to his name, his goals, his likes and dislikes, and hobbies, all of which Sakura mentally replying to each one he didn't answer, which just happened to be everything other than his name. The next was Naruto, saying that his dream was to become future Hokage, that he loved Ramen, and so and so forth. Next, was Sasuke. Sakura listened intently to what he was going to say. And to her great pleasure, his response wasn't as dark as it was last time. He still planned on killing Itachi but he didn't state that he hated everything and everybody. He apperantly still had no particuliar likes but Sakura knew better than that. She found out long ago, in both times, that he had a liking to tomatoes.

Anyway. . .

"What about you?" Kakashi turned his attention to her.

Sakura smiled brightly at her sensei, feeling a loving warmth spread through her entire being. "My name is Sakura Haruno. I like pushing myself to the limits and getting stronger to help my friends in any way I can. My dislikes involve me feeling useless and watching my loved ones in pain. My hobbies are training and causing trouble with Naruto." she finished with a smirk on her face. "My goal is," she paused and put the middle knuckle of her index finger to her chin in thought. Finally, she glanced back up at Kakashi, her smirk playing back on her features as she replied, closing her left eye in a sultry manner. "My goal is classified."

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

After the introductions, the three went back home with Kakashi's instructions on not eating breakfast or they would puke. Sakura knew that it was a bluff so that they would be weak, but she refrained from eating for Naruto and Sasuke's sake. If she decided to eat something, then Naruto would eat as well and then that wouldn't be fair to the Uchiha. So that night and morning flew by fast for her, used to not being able to eat in the past for days on end on harsh missions where her team couldn't aquire any food. Though she was mentally and physically capable of handling the task, it didn't stop her stomach from rumbling as she skipped breakfast that morning with the blonde. Unlike the last time, Sakura decided to eat dinner the night before, so she wasn't too hungry.

The three genin stood silently, waiting in the field for their obviously late sensei. Sakura grew tired of standing in the same spot and plopped down, her waist length, pink hair fanning out below her. She let out a lengthy sigh and closed her eyes as her bangs hugged her forehead. Since she hadn't met Ino under those circumstances, she was never given the pink ribbon and she had no desire to waist the effort of moving her bangs to the side. She didn't mind though. It was nice for a slight change in hair styles and she now wore her headband proudly around her neck, loose enough not to potentionally choke her.

Sakura opened her eyes and slowly stood up, sensing Kakashi's chakra before he even appeared. He showed up and Naruto grumbled about him being late. Their sensei explained the instructions to them and the group took off, each going their separate way. Sakura ran through leaves and bushes as her feet silently patted against the dirt and grass. She ran through the area until stopping into a clearing. She saw a huge tree to her right and decided to use it to her advantage. Channeling chakra to her feet, the kunoichi walked to it and began to casually walk up it. Stepping onto a farely large branch, she settled herself comfortably on it. Smirking, she patiently waited for the ninja above her to make his move.

"What is it, Kakashi-sensei? Too busy reading in order to attack me?"

"Aren't you going to try to capture one of the bells, Sakura?"

"In due time, Kakashi-sensei." she smirked. Yawning, she stretched out her muscles and stood up. Letting out a heavy sigh, she closed her eyes and searched for Naruto's chakra. It would be best for her to explain the situation to him first. If she told Sasuke first, Naruto would no doubt have a fit, asking why they had to work together. Then again, how would she explain it to them without letting it slip that she already _knew_ what the point of this kind of training was?

Her eyes snapped open as she glared at the wood of the branch under her. Kakashi was up to something. "You shouldn't let your gaurd down Sakura."

Turning her attention to her left, she avoided one of his attacks, jumping flawlessly into the air and landing on his extended arm. Quickly, she turned her attention to the book that was in his other hand, covering the majority of his face, and snapped it shut. She smirked when he looked up to meet her bright and playful gaze. "And you shouldn't underestimate your students sensei."

Before he could even reply, Sakura was gone. The kunoichi felt a sense of triumph run through her veins at the shocked look on Kakashi's face when she reacted so quickly and disappeared even quicker. She stopped her trail and leaned down, concealing herself behind a bush as she watched Naruto trying to approach Kakashi and ultimately failing to take one of the bells. Figures. It was just like last time, falling into a trap and ending up in a tree. It was obvious to anyone else that it was a trap. The pinkette sighed at the blonde that was her best friend. Some things would never change. Sakura leaned backward far enough so that her body would land on the ground. She would leave Naruto hanging there for awhile longer before she approached them. Sighing yet again, she decided that maybe approaching Sasuke with the earlier topic would be the best choice after all.

Standing up, she ran to where she felt both Sasuke and Kakashi's chakra levels. Sakura silently stopped behind a nearby bush to watch the scene, doing her best to mask her own chakra. She watched as Kakashi reached out a hand and pulled Sasuke into the ground. She bit her lip trying to keep in a laugh. Kakashi stayed there for a moment until she watched him disappear. Once he was far enough away, Sakura stood and made her way out of the bushes and toward the Uchiha. She couldn't help but smirk at the sight before her. Sasuke seemed to catch her since he was glaring at her with a frown on his face.

The pink haired kunoichi stopped feet in front of him, bending down and placing her elbows on her knees and her chin on her hands as she watched him. "Now this is truly a sight to behold." she laughed.

"Sakura." he grumbled unapprovingly.

"Yeah, yeah." she waved him off, her smile disapearing and being replaced with a serious expression. "Before I get you out of this, I have to tell you something important about this test."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her, signaling her to continue. "We both know that its odd that Kakashi-sensei only has two bells. I think his reason for that is because he wants to see if we can put that aside and still go far it. As a team." she finished, narrowing her eyes at him at the last part. "So that means, you're gonna have to put your one-man attitude and your dislike for Naruto aside in order to pull this off."

They stared at each other for a moment, much like the silent arguments they used to share with each other as little kids. Finally, Sasuke gave in, admitting to himself that her logic made sense. Nodding, he closed his eyes and groaned.

Sakura smiled brightly at his response, "Glad you understand. Now let's see you get out of this." She smirked wryly as he let out another groan.

The young Uchiha eventually made his way out of the ground, Sakura smirking and laughing the whole time while he did so. The two made their way to where she last saw Naruto, strangely with her not being able to sense Kakashi anywhere nearby. She quickly realized that he was masking it on purpose and her chakra was developed enough for her to sense it even with him trying to mask it to where he thought she couldn't. She gritted her teeth and suddenly stopped, making the male behind her to walk into her. Though she couldn't tell where his exact position was.

"Ouch Sakura. Why'd you stop?"

Sakura turned her attention and motioned for him to be quiet by placing her finger to her lips. Instantly, the two went on alert. Sakura quickly looked around in search of the jounin. She realized just a moment ago why he had been masking his chakra, he obviously knew that she could sense it the last time he snuck up on her so he apperantly didn't want to take any chances. She could feel the Uchiha behind her start to relax but her senses were still on alert, something that her body seemed to do automatically when it sensed danger, due to experience. Sakura silently thanked Tsunade again for the fact that even though her body was in it's twelve year old form, she still had all of her physical ablities and senses, well most of her physical abilities.

"There's no one around, Sakura."

"No." she whispered, cautiously. "He's here, watching us and waiting for us to drop our gaurd. Don't let him fool you again, Sasuke." She knew the boy was now glaring at her for her comment and she couldn't help but smirk. "Nonetheless, let's make our way to Naruto."

He nodded in return and they ran off toward the blonde's area, Sakura on full alert. It wasn't until they released him, that Kakashi decided to show himself. Sakura swung around, kunai at the ready. She kicked the blonde out of the way as shurikan flew at his form. She managed to grab one and deflect it. Though she wasn't surprised when he easily dogded it. Jumping into the air, she could vaguely hear Naruto grumbling into the dirt about how she kicked him. Sakura readied her kunai and landed in front of Kakashi. He looked down at her as if not expecting to see her there and reached down into the pocket strapped to his thigh. She saw his movements and suddenly disappeared. Kakashi glanced around, looking for the familiar pink hair of the kunoichi.

Sakura smiled when she appeared beside him, lowered at his waist as her kunai snagged at the strings the bells were attached to. She purposefully missed as Kakashi staggered back and away from her. She jumped back and out of the way as shurikan were thrown at her. She glanced over at Sasuke and met his onyx stare. She nodded at him and he seemed to understand as he took off toward Kakashi, weapons in each of his hands. Sakura looked at the awe-struck Naruto as he stared unbelievingly at her. Sakura glared at him, "Come on, Naruto." she yelled at him, "Get your rear and gear and _help_ us."

He continued to stare blankly at her until he nodded and did a shadow clone jutsu, bringing up four clones as they charged at the copy ninja. The pinkette smiled at him and turned her attention back to Kakashi, looking for any opening she could find as the two males attacked and Kakashi dodged.

'At least he had the brilliant idea of putting his smut away for this.' Sakura thought as she watched their sensei now using both of his hands to fight of Naruto and Sasuke. By that time, Kakashi had already vanished two of Naruto's shadow clones and she was slowly running out of time. Then her eyes widened as she caught something. 'There!' In a flash, Sakura made her way behind Kakashi and punched the ground, lightly enough to where her teammates didn't get hurt but powerful enough to put a small crater in the ground and catch Kakashi off gaurd. As fast as she could, she snagged the bells and jumped in between where her teammates landed, quickly sliding the strings into their tightened palms so that the bells would hang down. She was positive that Kakashi would pass them but she felt a bit of satisfaction with placing the bells in their hands.

The dust from the blow started to clear up as Sakura rubbed her wrist that was starting to swell. 'Damn.' she thought as she gritted her teeth. 'Its been so long since I've done that that I accidently twisted my wrist the wrong way.' Sighing, she looked back at the small crater that she caused and was a little more than ashamed to call it her own. It was pathetic, with a diameter of only five feet and three feet deep. She had to fight back a scoff just looking at the tiny hole. She raised an eyebrow and watched as Kakashi examined the hole, his finger under his chin as he circled it like a hawk.

"Well Kakashi-sensei, it looks like your bells are missing." she chuckled, raising her arms behind her head and placing them against the back of her neck.

"What?" all three men asked, incredulous. All of them looked down at the spot where the bells were once laying against the jounin's pants to only find that they were indeed, missing. Kakashi turned his attention back to the smirking pinkette.

Her expression immidiantly went to a defensive pout, her hands coming up in front of her chest. "Don't look at me. I don't have them."

Kakashi glanced between the two males on either side of the kunoichi, insantly seeing the bells hanging from the strings clentched in their hands, yet they didn't seem to notice that the small objects were in their possessions.

Sasuke was the first one that seemed to notice as his fist clenched around the string and he glared down at the ground. Naruto was next as he decided to gloat about it, about how he snatched it when nobody was looking. Sakura smiled at the blonde until her face turned serious and she turned her attention to the Uchiha next to her, sensing the slight raise in chakra. She placed a sterdy hand on his shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. He turned his attention to her, his eyes narrowed dangerously until his temper cooled down at the expression he met. Sakura stared warmly, reassuringly at him, a sad smile on her lips. She gave his shoulder another squeeze until she removed it and looked back up at Kakashi.

"So what do you say, Kakashi-sensei? Do we pass?"

The silver haired man stared at them for a moment until sighing and closing his one visible eye. "Yes, you pass."

"Yeah." Sakura and Naruto cheered happily.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Sakura."

The kunoichi stopped in her tracks after the four of them ate from the lunches Kakashi brought and started walking back to the village. She turned around with concern and confusion evident in her eyes.

"Slow down a bit. I want to talk to you."

"Alright." she nodded and slowed down her pace so that the two were behind Naruto and Kakashi, a good bit out of their hearing range. "What's upsetting you?" she asked.

"I want to know where you got that kind of power from." he stated strongly as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye. "I know that it was you who placed the bells in my and Naruto's hands."

Sakura glanced away, "It was the training I put myself through ever since you moved into your apartment." she spoke softly.

"What kind of training?"

"Oh, curious are we?" she grinned, looking over to glance at him. She let out a soft chuckle when the Uchiha scoffed at her and turned his head away. Suddenly, her expression turned serious and it seemed her whole presense was screaming for her his attention. Sasuke looked at her seriously as well, waiting for whatever it is she had to say. "Sasuke," she began, her voice barely above a whisper, "There is something important I have to tell you about Naruto but not now, later I will come over and explain as much as I can."

The Uchiha's eyebrow raised in question. "How much do you know that you aren't telling me?"

"Its not just you." she replied, shaking her head and looking back at the front of the group. "Only the adults know." Sakura gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes at the red swirl she could see on the back of Naruto's orange jumpsuit. "Because they were the only ones that were there."

"Then how come you know?"

From the corner of his eye, Sasuke could see her expression turn a little bit darker, but not from anger, from sadness.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that just yet."

"Alright." Sasuke nodded. He wouldn't drop the issue, they both knew that, but he would let it slide for now. "Sakura."

"Hmm?" she hummed, tilting her head to look at him but he was gone. Blinking, she felt his chakra signature on her right side and could feel his warm hand encircling her wrist. The pinkette let out a small hiss at the contact, not able to heal the wound yet with the others around.

"Did you do this back there?" he asked while holding up her swollen wrist for inspection.

"Yeah." she nodded glummly.

He looked up to meet her eyes with his eyes narrowed and a frown on his lips. "Why didn't you tell Kakashi-sensei?"

'In other words, "Why didn't you tell them that you got hurt like an idiot?"' Sakura thought, frowning. "I didn't want to trouble him."

"That's not very smart, Sakura." Sasuke replied, his voice rising with an emotion Sakura couldn't name. "How do you know its not broken?"

The kunoichi was slightly taken aback by the way he spoke to her with that emotion in his voice, an emotion that she just realized was concern. The Sasuke she knew would've never bothered himself with worrying over her and the Uchiha in front of her now was slightly - She didn't even know how to put it.

"I'm fine, its not broken. Just sprained, besides it'll be good as new later anyway."

He gave her a skeptical look that said he didn't believe her but he let go of her wrist anyway and turned his attention back to the front of the group.

"Please don't tell Kakashi-sensei about my wrist, Sasuke." Sakura asked, looking down at the ground with a dreadful look on her face. If Kakashi found out then he would defienatly know how she got rid of it so quickly. Naruto had an excuse for healing quickly as she did not. Well, not excuse that she could give him until the appropriate time. She knew her skills were at least at the chuunin level but she could only do so much before she would have to start using her healing abilities. Especially with the battles that were soon to come. . .

Sasuke watched as the kunoichi bit her lip and glared at the ground, conflicting emotions swirling in her jade orbs. He couldn't figure out what was wrong but he was determined to find out. At that moment, a loud, shrill voice called out to them, making both him and Sakura cringe.

"Heeyyy! Hurry up you two! We're going to go eat at Ichiraku Ramen!"

"But. . ." Sakura started to whine.

"We just ate." Sasuke finished, both of them with glum expressions on their faces.

"I swear, he's such a bottomless pit. Its a wonder that he doesn't empty the food out at our house." Sakura grumbled to no one in particular, Sasuke chuckling at her musings.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura could feel Kakashi following her in the shadows as she walked to Sasuke's apartment. He would probably want to hear what she wanted to say also. No matter. She couldn't spill too much about anything in front of Sasuke. But Kakashi, she decided he could be useful if he knew who she really was. She stopped in front of the Uchiha's door and knocked on it softly. She could hear footsteps make their way to the door shortly before opening it. She questioningly eyed his unusual attire of a baggy, white t-shirt and a pair of blue boxers as he ushered her in. She didn't comment on it though, figuring that he was comfortable enough around her to wear that kind of attire and not be ashamed. It was a pleasing thought but irrilevant nonetheless.

Sakura plopped down on the same old couch in the livingroom after Sasuke shut and locked the door behind them and walked into the room behind her. She groaned in discomfort at how sore her muscles felt. It was exetremly difficult to resist the urge to just heal the aches away but sadly, she couldn't at the moment.

"Why'd you make that noise?" the Uchiha asked, sitting down on the other side of the couch and throwing his arm over the side as he turned to look at her.

"Because I'm sore everywhere from training earlier." Sakura replied, wincing when she rubbed her hand against an especially cranky spot on her abdomen.

"Training?"

"Yeah." she nodded, now trying her best to nead the sourness out of her left bicep. "Now that we're genin, we have to keep in top shape for all of the missions that we're gonna have to do." She paused and stopped what she was doing to look at him. He had his head turned and was glaring at the ground with his teeth clenched. She knew that look all too well and she didn't like any of the thoughts that could possibly be running through his mind.

Sakura pulled her legs up and crossed them in front of her as she turned to fully face him. "Sasuke." The Uchiha tilted his head slightly in her direction, letting her know that he was listening. "I have a feeling I know what this is about." He scoffed and turned his head away even more and that was when she knew, she had her answer. It wasn't Naruto this time that he was competing against, it was her. Although Naruto would grow passed his skills during the chuunin exams, Sasuke didn't know that. He currently saw that she was the threat to his pride. And in a way, that thought filled her with pride and dread at the same time.

"Alright." Sakura nodded, a small smile on her lips as he glanced at her from the side. "What do you say we make this into a _healthy_ competition.

"What are you talking about?"

"Its obvious that you're upset with me because of how far I've gotten, but I'm letting you know now that you can be just as good."

Sakura's smile brightened when he turned his head to fully look at her, his sour expression turning into a calm neutral as he waited for her to continue.

"Well you see, fighting and arguing with each other might be comical at first but it will get us no where except hating each other, and I don't know about you, but I happen to not want to lose one of my best friends." Sakura stated, narrowing her eyes at him at the end. She would make this point simple and clear. She wouldn't lose him again. Everything was at stake if that happened.

"So what do you suggest we do?" he asked, raising a questioning eyebrow at her.

'Good, I've got his full attention.' the pinkette thought as she replied, "I think its best if we push each other to our physical limits and urge each other to get stronger. But also, I'll help you when you need it and you help me when I need it." She paused and raised a finger to emphasize her next point. "There is one rule that you must never break though."

Sasuke glanced down at her index finger and then back at her face. It was deadly serious and he knew that she wasn't playing around when she was telling him this. He nodded in understanding.

"You must _never_ take this competition too far and take out your frustration on us." Sakura watched as he stared at her quizzially. "I have my reasons for that rule." she stated, "Oh, and," she paused, a smile lighting up her beautiful, porcelein features. "Naruto will be in this competion too."

She giggled into the back of her hand when the Uchiha narrowed his eyes at her. "Why is that loser going to be apart of it?"

Sakura would've knocked the hell out of anyone else for calling Naruto such a name, but deep down, she knew Sasuke meant well. "Because believe it or not Sasuke, Naruto is going to get stronger."

He gave her a questioning look that said he didn't believe her.

"You'll see eventually." she smiled. "I've been watching him over the years and I can see that he'll be up there with us soon enough."

"Whatever." he scoffed, looking away from her.

Sakura grinned at him and stood up. Stepping in front of him, she playfully ruffled his dark hair.

"Sakura." he grumbled unapprovingly.

"Yeah, yeah. I know." she laughed, retreating her hand from his head. Before she could fully pull it back however, he grabbed her wrist, which just happened to be the one that was torn up earlier that day. She watched silently as he inspected it again.

"So it is fine now." he whispered and Sakura could've sworn that she heard a bit of relief in his words but she dismissed it. At that moment, the kunoichi could feel Kakashi's chakra signature getting farther away. She inwardly chuckled at the thought of him giving them privacy after he had eavesdropped for so long.

"Yeah, I'm a fast healer." she smiled.

"Clearly." he replied, dropping her wrist.

Sakura stared at him for a moment before her aching muscles came back with a vengence. Her left eye twitched as she fought back a wince. "Hey, Sasuke?"

"Hm?"

"Can I use your shower and borrow some clothes?"

Sasuke watched her for a moment as she looked at him, biting her lip. He contemplated on whether he should or not but finally he gave her an answer, smirking while doing so, "Yeah, now that I think about it, you do kinda stink."

Her reaction was exactly what he was looking for; Sakura's eyebrows furrowed as her lips formed a small pout, clearly unpleased by his response. "You're so mean."

"You don't honestly believe that, do you?" he grinned, standing up and standing inches from her. "I'm about to let you use my shower _and_ wear my clothes."

"Ohh," Sakura suddenly beamed, catching him slightly off gaurd. "Can I wear a pair of boxers? I've always wanted to know what it feels like to wear them."

He stared at her excited expression, confusion and amusement running through him. Sasuke continued to watch the kunoichi, her bright smile slowly turning into a frown. "Is that a 'no'?"

The dark haired male blinked a couple of times and let out a soft chuckle and placed his hand on her head, slightly ruffling up her pink locks. Sakura's eyes widened at the familiar, yet not so familiar contact. The way he genty placed his hand on her reminded her a lot of when Itachi used to do it to her but it was slightly different. There was a bit of possessiveness in the gesture that she knew belonged soley to the youngest Uchiha. The thought made her smile and she followed him as they went into his bedroom. She stood in the doorway and waited for him to grab a set of clothes for her. She watched him pick out a baggy, black t-shirt that no doubt ended at her thighs and a pair of black boxers.

"Are you sure you want to go home in a pair of boxers?" he asked, walking over to her and placing the two garments in her small hands.

"Its alright. Its not like anybody will be able to see them from under this huge shirt you gave me anyway." she replied, holding up the black shirt to look at it better. On the back, she saw that it had the Uchiha crest on it, bold and proud.

"Hn." he replied, nodding.

"Alright, I'll be in the shower." she smiled, walking away. She could feel his eyes on her back as she continued to walk down the hall and entered the bathroom. Locking the door behind her, she set the clean clothes on the counter and started to strip off her sweaty, dirty clothes. Her fingers traced over her seal mark as she took off her shirt. Standing in front of the mirror, she looked at the mark Tsunade had placed on her all those years ago. It felt like a life time ago and the seal was her only way of knowing that her old life was anything but a dream. She ran her fingertips across it again, admiring the work. Sakura felt a tingly warmth as she looked at it, grateful in so many ways that Tsunade had personally made the seal to look like the form of a swirling cherry blossom, specifically for Sakura.

The kunoichi had noticed over the years that that the higher her chakra strengthened, the bigger the blossoms grew. The first time she had noticed it when she traveled back in time was that each petal was the size of a flea. Now, each one was a little bit larger than her thumbnail. Not too good, but not bad either. The seal swirled around the outer layer of her navel and she absolutely loved it.

Averting her eyes from the beauty of each petal, she continued to remove her clothes, taking off her blue, ninja shoes then her nasty, green shorts that stuck to her sweat covered skin. She then pealed off any bandages that were wrapped around her ankles, thighs, and torso. She leaned over and turned on the hot and cold water faucets, slowly testing it to suit her needs. Satisfied with the hot tempature she had, she stepped into the tub and closed the curtains behind her. The female turned on the shower knob and instantly melted when the water sprayed against her abused muscles.

Sakura bit her lip to keep from groaning as she ran her fingers through her pink hair. Looking over, she saw all of the bath supplies that she needed.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sasuke waited patiently on the couch for the kunoichi to get out, the smell of water and shampoo filling the air inside the apartment. Hearing the water stop, his face started to heat up for an unknown reason. The Uchiha wasn't sure why he was acting anxious all of a sudden but no matter how much he tried to calm himself down, his body would only flare up more. Groaning and throwing his head back against the sofa, he closed his eyes and waited.

Sakura yawned into her palm and unlocked the door. Stepping out of the bathroom with her old clothes and bandages in her other hand, she closed the door behind her as she felt excess water from her long hair dripping down her back. She looked back down at herself again, feeling quite comfortable in the baggy clothes. The shirt he gave her did, indeed, fall down to her thighs, covering most of the boxers she wore under it. Yawning into her palm again as a single tear formed in the corner of her right eye, she made her way into the livingroom. The sight she saw was one she wasn't really expecting but wasn't too surprised to see it.

Sasuke was sitting on the couch, his fists clenching at his blue boxers and his teeth gritted as he glared fiercily at the ground in front of him. Sakura made her way to him to see what was wrong. She stepped in front of him and watched. When he made no move, she leaned forward and placed her palm over his forehead. The heat that she felt almost made her draw her hand back. But instantly, her old medic self decided to kick in and quickly asked, "Are you okay, Sasuke? Do you have a fever?"

The Uchiha snapped out of his thoughts and quickly looked up at her. The kunoichi watched as his eyes roamed over her entire body. Her bangs stuck to her face, hugging her smooth cheeks. There really wasn't much to see of her chest since she really didn't have much of one at that age and she was leaning over so the shirt hung down. Her legs however, were long and bare to see as water trickled down them from her shower. What didn't help matters though, aside from her wearing his clothes and touching him, she smelt like him as well. Sasuke bit his lip and turned his head, clenching his eyes shut. He couldn't look at her. It was too much.

Sakura's concern grew at his reaction, too worried over his health than to notice the growing blush on his cheeks. "Sasuke, answer me."

"Sakura." he mumbled and she noticed that his voice was a bit huskier than normal. "Leave."

She wasn't at all shocked by his statement but she couldn't help but wonder what she did. Pulling her hand back, she took a good look at the male sitting down in front of her. His eyebrows were furrowed, his eyes were tightly closed and he was biting his lip. Her jade orbs lowered to see his chest heaving heavily. She then noticed that his hands were at the end of his boxers, gripping and curling the thin material there. It was slowly starting to add up but once her eyes continued to travel over him, she finally came up with the reason for his odd behavior.

He was aroused.

Sakura looked up at his face and frowned. He most likely didn't even realize what was happening with his body. He was too young when Itachi killed their family and then left. Ever since then, he lived on his own so there was nobody there to tell him about the sexual things. She realized that he just wanted to get rid of the cause for his body's reactions, which was her apparently. It was a natural solution, she knew, but one he couldn't continue to have in the future.

Sighing, she ruffled his hair one last time and began to walk to the front door. "Thanks Sasuke. I'll see you tomorrow. G'night."

"Night." he grumbled just loud enough for her to hear before she exited the room and left the apartment.

Once the pink haired female left his apartment, the young male groaned and threw his head back against the couch, running a hand through his bangs as he closed his eyes in frustration. He wasn't sure why his body had reacted that way to Sakura and it was a bit unnerving. He couldn't control it and it only worsened when she was near him, when she had leaned over him, ruffled his hair.

Sasuke let out another groan of frustration and he could feel his boxers slowly getting less comfortable. Damnit, he had to calm down. The young male didn't know too much about the idea and details of sex, but at least Itachi had done _something_ for him when he was younger, though Sasuke had no idea what the hell he was talking about at the time. He silently thanked his older, traitor brother for explaining what erections were, what caused them, and how to get rid of them.

But to think that he had gotten one, because of _Sakura_ of all people, was strangely frightening. Sasuke had never had an erection before and he didn't know how to handle it. So he had done the only thing that he thought reasonable. To make her leave, and he was thankful that she had.

Finally opening his onyx eyes, he rolled over onto his back to fully lay down on the couch as he stared up at the ceiling. He wasn't sure how he would react to her after that, he wasn't even sure if she knew what had happened to him, but he couldn't make it obvious that anything had changed.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Some time passed by since then, the three genin completing small, boring missions in that time. Sakura was quite pleased when Sasuke hadn't treated her any differently since that time. He acted normal, just like he used to and she was glad for it.

The pinkette had gone shopping a few days before the day that they got their first real mission. Sakura had bought an outfit that wouldn't really get in the way in battle. Her shirt was red and fit her torso snuggly but with sleeves that stopped before meeting her shoulders and it stopped a little above her navel, partially revealing her cherry blossom seal. Fish nets aligned her top half, covering her entire stomach, back, and chest under her shirt, along with her shoulders as it stopped a little above her elbows. She wore a pair of black shorts that fit snuggly for easy mobility. She wore the typical ninja shoes but somehow managed to get them in black to match her outfit. Along with some bandages that hooked around her right thigh, her weapons pouch was strapped at that spot. Her small bag for her shurikan was attached at the same place also, behind her and attached to the left side. Just like before, she kept her headband tied around her neck instead of in her hair.

That was her new attire as Team Kakashi made their way to the front gate and met the bridge builder that they were supposed to be protecting. He had made some snarky remarks about their group, instantly getting on Naruto's bad side but the other three ignored them as they bickered.

Sakura walked not too far away from Kakashi as she watched the road ahead. Her fists clenched and unclenched multiple times as they continued to make their way to the Land of Waves.

"Why are you so tense, Sakura?"

The kunoichi blinked a few times and cleared herself out of her thoughts. She looked over and saw Kakashi looking at her. She put on a big smile and lied, "Nothing, sensei. I'm just excited about this mission, is all."

The copy ninja nodded his head but didn't at all seem satisfied with that answer. Sakura looked to the front of the group a good ways away and saw Naruto and Sasuke arguing over something or another. The sight brought a weak smile to her lips.

"Its obvious to anyone to see that you're the brains of the group." Kakashi said, turning his attention to the two buffling idiots in front, amused.

Sakura's smile brightened as she held back a laugh. "Yeah."

"That test I put you three through. I had expected each of you to put your personal interests first and never work as a team until the last minute, or at least, until I explained that to you."

Sakura made a weird, laughing noise as really old memories flooded through her head of when that actually happened. "Nonetheless," Kakashi continued, "you were able to convince Sasuke to do so otherwise and your odd relationship with Naruto led him to follow your orders."

The pinkette smirked inwardly and couldn't help but feel pride run through her at his comment. But not nearly as much as his next statement did, "I'm not sure if those two have realized it yet, but your skills are nearly that of a jounin."

Sakura really did smirk at that but it quickly disappeared. "Sakura, how much do you really know about Naruto?"

She quickly looked away, hiding her eyes behind her bangs. "I-um-uh. . ."

"Its okay to tell me."

The kunoichi turned her head to look her sensei in the eye. "I know, sensei. And I plan to tell you everything in due time because I need your help but at the moment I can't."

Kakashi stared at her for a moment until finally nodding at her and turning his attention to the front of the group. He saw that Naruto had stopped and was staring at something on the ground. He felt Sakura immidiantly ready a kunai.

The kunoichi ran as fast as she could and knocked Naruto out of the way as soon as a clawed hand emurged from the water. She quickly threw the kunai at the puddle and gritted her teeth as it disappeared before her kunai could get to it. Rushing over, she grabbed the kunai from the ground and readied herself.

"Wave ninja." Kakashi spoke, his senses on alert.

As if on instinct, Sakura ran over and stood in front of the bridge builder. She dismissed his comments and listened around for any signs of movement. The area was quiet for a moment before one appeared in front of her. She narrowed her eyes at him and was prepared for a counter attack when a flash of blue and white appeared before her. Sakura gritted her teeth when she realized it was Sasuke. He knocked the attacker away and ran back into battle.

'Honestly, things never change.' she inwardly grumbled, thinking back to how he had done the same thing last time.

Soon the fight ended, with the others fighting off the two water assassins and Sakura successfully protecting the bridge builder. Though it didn't feel much like a success because she didn't do anything. She absolutely hated that feeling. The dreaded feeling of being useless. The kunoichi watched silently as Sasuke taunted Naruto just like before, asking if he was hurt and calling him a 'scaredy-cat'. Everyone except her gasped as he plunged a kunai threw his hand, claiming how he was going to be the best and so on and so forth.

Sakura had to let out a small giggle when he started freaking out about his new wound. She watched as Kakashi's face slightly lit up with surprise as Naruto's cut started to heal instantly. Turning around and sighing, Sakura began to walk forward. Spotting movement to her right and sensing no threat, she walked over to a large bush. Squating, she slowly pushed back the leaves.

"What are you doing, Sakura?"

"Shhh."

Naruto huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. The pinkette continued to move the leaves around until spotting the cutest thing she ever saw, in both times. Her jade eyes widened when she saw that the small creature was dying from a serious battle wound, most likely having got hit by one of the wave assassins. Gently placing her hand over the tiny creature, she poured healing chakra into her palm. Slowly, she could feel the wounds returning to their former, healthy states, along with the weak state of the animal's own chakra. Satisfied with her work, she wrapped both her hands around the furry, auborn colored bundle.

Sakura's face brightened when she pulled it out of the bushes and into the daylight. What she held in her hands was the most adorable, baby fox. "Awww, you're so cute!" she cooed, lifting the tiny kit into the air so she could get a better look at it. "I'm not entirely sure yet, but I think its a boy." she said to no one in particular.

"How can you tell?" questioned Naruto, moving next to her to look at the animal as well.

Sakura turned her head and frowned at him, pulling the kit into her warm chest. "I'm not gonna explain that to you." She could hear Kakashi chuckle behind her. In fact, he was right behind her. The female wipped her body around, her long, pink hair hitting Naruto in the face, causing him to hiss and back away in pain and Sasuke to laugh at him.

She stared at the copy ninja for a moment. He had a perplexed look on his face while her expression had a hint of worry in it. "You didn't see that, did you?"

Kakashi continued to stare at her for a moment before nodding, "You can tell me when you're ready."

Sakura frowned but nodded nonetheless. Then she turned her attention to the sleeping kit in her arms and back at a pouting Naruto. She exchanged glances between the two, deciding on a name. Suddenly a bright smile lit her lips, "I'm gonna call this little guy Kyoun."

"Kyoun? What kind of name is that?" Naruto asked, giving her an incredulous look, making her frown. "Where the hell did you get that from?"

Sakaru narrowed her eyes at the blonde, clearly upset. "Naruto, watch your damn mouth in front of the little one."

The other three males in the group started laughing at the duo. The blonde and pinkette deeply frowned as they looked at them and back at each other. The two raised their eyebrows in wonder and shrugged.

"Anyway," Sakura started, looking back at their sensei, "we should get going."

The copy ninja nodded his head, his laughter turning into small chuckles. The group went on their way. During the time that they made it to the Land of Waves, Zabuza had shown up and Kakashi revealed his Sharingan. Sakura was slightly on edge the whole time since, not only did she have to protect the bridge builder, but also the quievering, auborn ball of fur in her arms. She had looked up at the mask that she knew Haku was behind. They had stared at each other for a few moments until he carried Zabuza's body off. Once the battle was over, Sakura had stayed behind for a moment and seriously contemplated her situation. She knew Zabuza wasn't dead and they still had to face him many more times. She should've ran up and kicked him and make one of those senbon move to hit an artery or something. Or plundge a kunai through his heart when Kakashi checked his pulse.

When the group continued on, Sakura had purposefully held Kakashi back so she could speak to him. The kunoichi watched as Sasuke, Naruto, and the bridge builder got ahead of them and out of ear shot.

"That man is not dead, Kakashi-sensei."

"What are you talking about, Sakura? He had no pulse." the copy ninja asked, confusion on his face behind his mask as he looked down at the serious looking female.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she replied, "That young man you saw, he is no tracker. He is Zabuza's partner and as we speak, he is tending to Zabuza's wounds. Those needles he threw at him," Sakura paused, glaring at the ground, "they are used to stop a person's heartbeat. As long as they don't hit any vital points, he will live."

"So you're saying that we have another fight on our hands?"

Sakura nodded at him, turning her head to look at him. "Two, in fact." Well, only one more if she had a say in it.

"How do you know that?" Kakashi asked, his face suddenly extremely serious.

The kunoichi turned her attention back to the rode in front of them. "I'm not sure you'll believe me if I told you now, but either way, it is a very long story and it will take more time than this walk can give us. Maybe later when those two are working on their chakra." she sighed and felt the kitsune in her arms squirm. She smiled when it popped it's head up and looked at her, his blue eyes wide and bright. They stared at each other for a moment, until it gave her a quizzical look. Sakura mimicked it's movements when it tilted it's head to the side.

Then as if testing her, it bit her finger. Sakura hissed and narrowed her eyes at the small creature. "Now you listen here." she yelled, holding it out in front of her by both hands, ignoring it when everyone turned to look at her. "You will not be biting any fingers unless I say otherwise. You got that?"

The kitsune's ears fell forward and his tail curled up in between it's hind legs in a submissive manner. Sakura smiled at the small creature, "Glad you understand." She pulled the animal back into her chest and held it there in a cradle.

"Is Sakura picking on the cat?" called Naruto as he continued to watch the pinkette while walking backwards.

"Its definitely a fox, loser." the pinkette heard Sasuke say as he turned his attention back to the road ahead of them.

"Yeah, whatever, I was just making sure you knew that."

Sakura smiled at the two as Sasuke scoffed at him before smiling down at the kit in her arms. Sasuke ignored the blonde's ramblings for a moment to glance back at the strange duo that had automatically clicked. It was definitely strange; the way Sakura could just walk up to a stray animal and seem to tame it without a problem. The way she smiled lovingly down at it, he couldn't help but feel a bit envious of the small creature, though he knew that he shouldn't be jealous.

Turning his attention back to the road ahead, he continued to ignore Naruto as his thoughts took off. What the kunoichi had done with the kit, it reminded him a bit of how she was with him and Naruto. In many ways, it was like Sakura had tamed them as well. Sasuke could tell that if she hadn't been there to keep him in check, he would have spiralled down a dark path. And with Naruto, it was like she was his mother at times, always keeping him out of trouble when she could, although she had a tendency to get in trouble along with him. But she had stood by both of their sides, doing her best to take care of them. The thought brought a small smile to his lips.

Please review what you think :)


	4. Land of Waves

Thank you for the reviews, I absolutely love them :) This chapter is a bit longer than the last and I hope you enjoy it just as much :)

I also noticed that my scene changes weren't being separated like they were supposed to, I apologize for that and for any confusion it may have caused and from now on I'll make it clearer that the scenes change and I've already gone back and cleared up the mistake in the other chapters.

Chapter 4: Land of Waves

They soon made it to the Land of Waves and now Sakura was watching from a high tree branch as her two teammates struggled to get up their own trees, not making it very far the first few tries. She petted the bundle of fur that was curruntly making an approving noise in her lap. As kunoichi watched the two males, it was almost unbelievable to think about how powerful they would soon become. From hardly being able to walk up a tree to being able to destroy whole villages single handely. Hell, if they wanted to, they could've taken over a whole country. The thought of them going through so much change without her left a bittersweet taste in her mouth. They both left without her to become stronger; to forge their own paths while she stayed behind, struggling to catch up to them.

"It almost looks like you're reminiscing about something." spoke a male voice from above her.

Sakura sadly smiled, "I guess you could say that."

"Who are you really?"

The pinkette sighed and stood up on her branch, the kit jumping off of her and onto the branch at the last second. "Like I said, its a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?"

"I've got time."

"Of course you do." Sakura smirked. "Well, let's make sure to get out of hearing range from these two. But I have to stay at eye sight, I don't want to leave Naruto out here by himself tonight."

"Do you think something will happen?"

"Yes." Sakura mumbled, "And no." She wasn't sure what was going to happen since she wasn't around last time, but she had an edgy feeling about the dawn for some reason.

"Alright, well, let's get to a higher branch."

Sakura nodded and grabbed the kit. He hurdled into her chest carefully. She smiled at the small bundle and jumped, following Kakashi as he landed on a higher branch.

"This should be fine." he said.

The kunoichi landed on a nearby branch and looked down. She could still see her two teammates but they shouldn't be able to hear their conversation. Sitting down, she loosened her grip on the fox. "I guess I'll just start at the beginning, but I'm afraid I can't reveal my purpose for coming here."

Kakashi nodded and leaned up against the tree, ready to listen to her story.

"Well, my name really is Sakura Haruno and I was originally part of Team Seven. But believe it or not, I am really from thirteen years in the future from now."

"Time travel?" Kakashi asked, his face lighting up in absolute shock. "Is that even possible?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow at him, though she wasn't surprised at his response. "Its crazy, I know, but we live in a world where the dead can be brought back to life and where people can destroy mountains with mere fists. Time travel is possible like everything else, but it comes with a price." The kunoichi frowned deeply, continuing, "Aside from draining the person of almost all their chakra, the jutsu is incredibly difficult and with one slip up, you could die."

The kunoichi looked down at the ground, watching as the others continued their training. "At that time, we were desperate and I was the only one with the sufficiant chakra and enough chakra control to do the jutsu. I was sent back in time months before the Uchiha massacre so I've been here in this time for a number of years."

"Why that far back? Why not just send you back to when you became a genin?"

"The Hokage at that time had her reasons and wanted me to gain as much information and chakra as I could before everything started to happen. Sometimes its a pain really, gathering all that chakra over again and I'm still not anywhere close to where I once was."

"How strong are you now?"

"Well, I have most of my strength since I built up my muscles but as far as chakra goes, its pathetic." The pinkette sighed and closed her eyes in disappointment. "If I had my original strength, I'd be able to walk right up to Orochimaru without a problem and tear him apart."

"Orochimaru? How do you know _him_?"

"He comes in later on, that sorry waste of a person. I swear." the female grumbled and clenched her fists out in front of her, "Eveytime I think or hear about him, I just wanna rip his tongue out and shove it up his ass."

Kakashi cringed as the image ran through his mind.

"Anyway," Sakura continued, calming down and going back to petting the kit in her lap. "Tsunade becomes the future Hokage and tought me healing chakra. I got so well at it, I even surpassed her, but that was years before I left."

"What happens to the Hokage now?"

There was a dreary pause between them as the wind blew past. "He dies."

"What? When?"

"During the chuunin exams, there is a surprise attack combined with Sound and Sand troops."

"Sound?"

"The Land of Sound is a new country created by Orochimaru himself in hopes of eventually taking over. He wants the Leaf Village destroyed. During the chuunin exams, he disguises himself and sneaks into it. A month later, when the exams are continued, Orochimaru takes the form of the Kazekage to get close to the Hokage. They battle each other and the Hokage dies fighting him, but in return, part of Orochimaru's soul was ripped out. Or so I heard." Sakura paused and took a deep breath, she hadn't realized her breath was shaky until then. "I wasn't there to witness the battle but the Hokage had made it so that Orochimaru couldn't use his arms, therefore, cannot perform any jutsus."

"Where were you at the time of this battle?"

Sakura turned her body around to lean up against the tree and looked back down at her two best friends. "I was with Naruto, Shikamaru, and Pukkon looking for Sasuke."

"Pukkon? You mean-?"

"Yep." she nodded, "You were the one to give us the orders to go after him. He was going after a Sand ninja named Gaara."

"And all of this happens during the chuunin exams?"

"Yeah. A bit hectic, don't you think? The exam turns into an all out battle. Nearly most of the village is destroyed by Orochimaru."

"Why don't you want anybody else to know this?" he asked, his voice sounding serious and she knew that he was. It was a big risk she was taking; to put the village at stake like that when she had information to possibly prevent it.

Sakura looked over at her sensei, her eyebrows furrowing a bit as she frowned. "Because do you honestly think that they'd believe that a girl came from the future to warn them? They'd think I was insane. Besides, that battle was supposed to happen and if we stop it then we would never get Tsunade as Hokage and we wouldn't become allies with Sunagakure, which happens to be our greatest alliance yet."

Kakashi stared at her for a moment, sinking everything in, until finally nodding in understanding. "So what happens after the battle?"

Sakura's eyebrows furrowed as a deep frown sprayed across her lips. Looking back down at the two boys, she weakly responded, "Everything starts to go downhill. Sasuke gets obsessed with gaining power and gets extremely jealous when he realizes how powerful Naruto becomes. His jealousy, hatred, and craving for power will eventually lead him to betrayal."

"What?!"

The kunoichi looked back at her sensei, her facial expression the most serious that he had ever seen it. "During that month, Naruto finds out what is inside him and learns how to channel the Kyuubi's chakra, saving and helping him on many occassions during the exams. You, Kakashi-sensei, helped Sasuke during his training with his speed and Chidori. No matter what you know now, you have to teach him that, sensei. And promise that you won't tell anybody any of this."

Kakashi nodded his head. Sakura grinned at the man and stood up, holding the now sleeping kit in her arms. The next question Kakashi asked caught her off gaurd completly. "So uh, Sakura. How old are you really?"

The pinkette almost stumbled out of the tree with shock. She eyed him with an incredulous look but decided to answer anyway, "Well, by adding up the total amount of years I've actually lived through, I'm technically old enough to be your mother."

The copy ninja tilted his head and scratched his cheek. "That's. . . reassuring."

Sakura laughed at his obviously awkward moment and jumped down, soon landing gracefully on her feet. She watched as her two best friends' chests heaved up and down as they sprawled out on the ground. She heard Kakashi walk up next to her and could tell that he was looking at the Uchiha.

"Does he come back?"

The two on the ground looked up at them as she replied, "I don't know yet. I hope so, Kakashi-sensei."

"Hmm, well this sure makes things interesting." the copy ninja smirked.

"Yeah." she nodded, smiling as her two best friends gave her and their sensei confused looks. "You two are _so_ gonna be sore in the morning." she laughed, bending down and poking Naruto in his side.

She grinned when he tried to worm away and let out a tired, "Ow, Sakura. That hurt."

Kyoun, the fox Sakura had rescued, walked up to the blonde and sat down on his chest, staring at him. Sakura's grin faded as she watched the tiny kitsune. It continued to stare at him for a moment until all of it's auborn hair stood on end. The pinkette's eyes widened when it crawled back and started to make a hissing noise at Naruto.

"Ahhhh! Get this thing off!" the blonde yelled, too tired to even move other than swing his arms around in the air.

Sakura quickly yet gently picked up Kyoun, turning him around to look him in the eyes as he squirmed in her grasp. He tried frantically to escape, biting and clawing at her arms, face, and neck. Finally Sakura had enough and grabbed the kit by the scruff of his neck and slightly held him away from her as she yelled, "Stop it!"

The kitsune immidiantly stilled and went into a submissive position, ears folded against it's head and fluffy tail between it's hind legs. Sakura looked into the kit's big, blue eyes and recognized the look as fear, but not fear from her. Fear from. . . The kunoichi looked back over at Naruto and saw a look of shock on his face. 'Could it be possible that he sensed the Kyuubi in Naruto?' Sakura wondered, looking back at the bundle of fur hanging calmly in her grasp.

She bent down on her knees and placed the kit down in front of her gently. They stared at each other for a moment until Sakura tilted her head to the left. The baby fox followed her movements and tilted it's head to the right, mirroring her. Sakura then tilted her head to the other side, the fox doing the same as her. Finally Sakura returned her head to a normal position and watched as Kyoun did so as well, except this time, when they finished, he bowed his head to her, almost respectfully.

The female smiled brightly at the small creature. "Glad you understand." she repeated just like the last time that they got into a head tilting conversation.

"What the hell was that just now?" Naruto asked rather loudly.

Sakura turned her head around and frowned as she watched the two males strain to sit up. "Watch what you say in front of Kyoun, Naruto! I don't need him picking up any bad habits from you when he gets older."

"You say that as if he can understand us." Sasuke stated, furrowing his eyebrows in bewilderment.

"That's because he can." Sakura smiled and leaned over to scratch behind an auborn colored ear. The kit leaned into her touch and made an approving sound, making her smile brighter.

"How so?" Naruto asked, not willing to believe that a mere animal could understand what people were saying.

"At first I didn't notice it, but it seems that Kyoun, here, carries a bit of chakra himself."

"Are you sure about that, Sakura?" asked Kakashi, now leaning down beside her to hold a hand up to the tiny fox. Kyoun sniffed the copy ninja's hand and started to walk into it, rubbing it's fur against it much like that of a cat.

"Yeah, his chakra level is so tiny though that its almost nonexistant. It appears that he can sense other people's chakra though and reacts when he feels threatened." Sakura stated, looking back over at Naruto. 'Kyoun reacted to the Kyuubi inside Naruto, but even I can't sense the nine-tailed fox's chakra.'

"Hey don't look at me! I didn't try to hurt him." Naruto yelled, holding his arms out in a defensive manner. Sakura stared at him for a moment more until turning her attention back to the fox that was now making it's way over to Sasuke. She watched as Kyoun sat in front of the Uchiha and they stared at each other. Everyone was silent as the scene began to play in motion, Kyoun tilting his head to the side. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the small creature.

"I'm not doing that silly head thing."

Sakura started to smirk when the kit's eyes seemed to narrow at him and tilted it's head to the other side. Sasuke continued to glare at the animal until it came closer and put it's front paws on the Uchiha's crossed legs. Kyoun tilted his head to the other side and patiently waited. Finally relenting, Sasuke sighed and tilted his head to the side to mirror the kit's actions. The baby fox seemed satisfied with this reaction as he jumped over the Uchiha's legs and snuggled into his chest. Sasuke quirked an eyebrow at him, but moved a hand over the animal to rub it's fur almost awkwardly.

"What's the point of that anyway?" Naruto grumbled, probably upset that the kit liked the Uchiha instead of him.

"Its a way of showing superiority." Sakura replied, smiling at the scene.

"Superiority?" Naruto asked, looking up at her.

"Its only natural that children want to rebel." spoke Kakashi, standing back up as he watched the scene as well. "The kit was most likely trying to see who he could get away with certain stuff with."

Sakura stood as well and placed her hand her hip as she grinned, "I hear foxes are very mischievous animals and it seems he's taken a liking to the Uchiha."

This caught Sasuke's attention as he frowned up at the pinkette. "Glad you understand." she snickered, repeating those words for the second time that evening.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked the blonde, looking up at Sakura, though her grin and gaze never left Sasuke's frowning response.

"It means, from now on, Sasuke is gonna have to watch out for something other than enemies over his shoulders."

"Ohhh." Naruto replied, finally figuring out what they were talking about. He turned his attention back to the dark haired male, a huge grin on his face and amusement clear in his blue orbs.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the blonde that was clearly enjoying the situation he was in before turning his attention back to the fur ball rubbing up against his chest. He grabbed the kit by the scruff and held him back to look him over. Kyoun made a disapproving sound and pulled his ears toward his head, though not in the submissive manner that he would go into when Sakura had him. His fluffy, auborn tail swished back and forth playfully as if asking for trouble.

"I can already tell you're going to be a pain, damnit."

Sakura frowned, "Sasuke, watch your mouth."

The Uchiha returned the frown as he looked up at her. Then he looked back at the kit in his arm staring at him and narrowed his onyx orbs at the way the animal's eyes just seeped with mischievousness.

_~~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura swung her leg back and forth over the tree branch as she looked up into the starry sky. Kyoun was sprawled on her lap as he slept peacefully. Lifting up a glowing, green hand, she brought it up to the cuts covering her face and then neck, healing the tiny wounds. She didn't care about the ones on her arms, she would let those heal naturally. Sighing and closing her eyes, she willed sleep to take over her, her senses on alert the whole night as Naruto worked himself to exhaustion on the ground under her.

The kunoichi woke up with a start as she sensed a strong chakra signature come closer. Putting Kyoun down on the branch beside her, Sakura looked over the edge to see someone walking closer to Naruto. The pinkette masked her own chakra as she watched him step closer to the sleeping blonde. Readying a kunai, she waited to see if he was a threat. She watched as he sat down and placed the basket down beside him as he searched through the grass. Sakura lowered her weapon, curiousity taking over. Putting it back into her weapons pouch, Sakura gently grabbed Kyoun and jumped down to the ground. She landed beside Naruto and set the sleeping kit beside the blonde.

"I was wondering when you would show yourself."

Sakura turned her head to look at the most gorgeous person she had ever laid eyes on. She hadn't gotten a good look at Haku's face the last time and she was instantly relling in his beauty. His hair was shiny and beautiful as it absorbed the sun's rays and his eyes were a mature and sensible color, hard to place a name to but magnetic and beautiful nonetheless. His face was pale and soft looking. A black neck bracer hugged against the smooth skin of his neck, drawing out his gorgeous features even more.

"You _are_ a boy, right?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, uncertainty and jealousy running through her.

He seemed surprised by her question. "Yes."

Sakura's jaw slackened and her face fell. "Awww man, it should be a crime for a guy to be so gorgeous." she pouted, jumping from foot to foot as if having a temper tantrum.

Haku laughed into the back of his hand. Sakura's eyes widened and she frowned, 'Even the way he laughs is so cute. This is so unfair.' "I'm guessing you're looking for herbs." she stated, watching as he searched through the green patch under him.

"Yes I am."

Sakura nodded and moved to sit on the other side of Naruto, separating the two males with her body. Haku seemed to notice this move and smiled at her. "Its alright. I pose no threat."

"Sorry." Sakura smiled sheepishly, "Its like a second nature to me."

"You were out here all night, watching over him?"

"Yeah." she nodded, watching as he went back to picking the herbs.

"He's precious to you."

"You have someone like that too, I know."

Haku stopped what he was doing and looked at her, a small look of surprise on his features. After a moment, he smiled at her and nodded. "So you understand what its like to want to protect someone."

"Yeah." Sakura nodded. She knew what he was talking about. Protecting someone, but not just anyone; someone you truly loved. "Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead." Haku replied calmly, going back to the herbs again.

Sakura looked over at the blonde, a sad smile on her lips, recalling how things were supposed to turn out in the future; the main reason why she had come back to this time. "If your loved one just happened to leave you behind to get stronger. What would you do?"

There was a moment of silence where she knew that he was considering her question seriously, but then he spoke up without any hesitation in his voice, "That's not an easy question to answer but, I honestly believe I would let them go."

"Really?" Sakura asked, shocked, as she looked back over at the male.

"Yes." he nodded, a small smile on his lips that looked sad to the kunoichi. "If that is what he wanted, I would support him in any way I can."

"But. . ." Sakura started, slightly frowning at the male now, but not at all phased by the fact that he said 'he' or 'him'. "Wouldn't it be unfair?"

"Life isn't always fair." Haku stated, "Especially the life that of a shinobi."

The kunoichi blanched, staring at him for a few moments as he picked through the herbs and placed them into his basket. Finally, she smiled at the male, "You truly are wise beyond your years." Sakura grinned when he looked up at her, face blank. "I can already tell that we're going to get along in the future."

Suddenly, she felt the male behind her start to stir. Sakura stood and wiped the grass off of her and walked over to the other side of the waking ninja and picked up Kyoun. She raked her nails over the fox's fur and smiled at the Wave shinobi. "Don't tell Naruto I was here, please? I don't want him worrying over the fact that I slept out here to watch over him instead of sleeping in a warm bed."

Haku nodded his head and smiled at her before she jumped into the large branches above, a sleeping Kyoun in her arms. At that moment, the blonde's eyes slowly began to open.

The kunoichi sprawled across a large branch as she listened to the conversation below. She couldn't fight off a smirk everytime Naruto called Haku 'sis'. Soon though, Haku stood up and as he began to walk away with the basket full of herbs in his hands, Sakura made her way to the lesser branches. She was about five yards up in the tree and to the left from where Naruto stood as she watched Haku turn around and reveal the true identity of his gender. Sakura had to press her palm over her mouth to hold in the laughter as Naruto's body language said that he was obviously shocked.

At that moment, she spotted Sasuke as he walked up, turning his head to look back at the male that just passed him. 'I wonder if he thinks he's a girl too.' Sakura inwardly chuckled.

"Hey dobe, is Sakura st-"

Sasuke's onyx eyes glanced up and saw the kunoichi sitting comfortably on a tree branch with an index finger covering her smirk, signaling him to be quiet. He rolled his eyes and shrugged. The Uchiha put his hands in his pockets and looked down at Naruto. "Let's get going loser. Breakfast is ready." With that, he turned around and started walking back to the nearby village.

"What about Sakura?" Naruto frowned as began walking forward. His hair whipped in the wind as a flash of bright color flew past him.

Sasuke grunted when a bundle landed on the top of his dark head. He reached up and pulled the annoying thing off, only to realize that it was Kyoun. The tiny fox's ears were standing tall and his tail swished back and forth as he smiled up at the frowning Uchiha.

"Hey, is that Kyoun? What's he doing here?" asked Naruto as he ran up to the duo.

Sasuke turned around and glared at the smug look that was on currently Sakura's face. The next second, the kunoichi disappeared right before Naruto turned around to see what he was glaring at. Figures, she would just _have_ to leave with the fur ball still in his presence, knowing damn well that he didn't want to deal with it.

The Uchiha wasn't surprised when the kit managed to escape his grasp and crawled up his arm gracefully and made himself comfortable on the dark haired male's shoulder. Groaning in frustration as Naruto snickered, they began to make their way back, Kyoun pawing at Sasuke's dark locks the whole time.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura yawned dramitically into her palm as she walked out of the bathroom right after brushing her teeth. She 'oof'ed when she bumped into a hard chest. Stepping back, she looked up into the not so pleased face of a certain dark haired male. Tilting her head to the side, she gave him a quizzical look. His glare intensified as he held up a frowning kit up in front of him.

"Awww." Sakura cooed, leaning over and looking into the fox's pouty blue eyes, "Have you been a bad boy?"

He opened his mouth and let out a high pitched whine in return.

"Do you want me to beat the big meanie, Sasuke up for you?" she asked, scratching her index finger behind the kit's left ear. He made another whining noise.

"Alright, Sasuke. Come here." Sakura said, placing her left hand on right forearm and slowly swinging her arm around in a threatening manner. It would've been scary to a child if she wasn't grinning as she looked up at him. "Kyoun wants me to beat you up."

"As if you could." he scoffed, making her frown and stop her arm movements. "Just tell this one," he said, lifting him up higher to indicate that he was talking about the kit. "not to jump on my head again."

Sakura pouted as she grabbed Kyoun from Sasuke's hand. "Aww, but he looked so cute nestled in that dark, hair nest of yours."

The Uchiha frowned at her as she cooed and began to pet the small animal. "I'm not sure who is worse, Naruto or you." Sakura looked up at him, expressionless as she listened to him. "You're both annoying." He sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

The kunoichi frowned at that but then smirked at the male as he opened his onyx eyes and looked back down at her. She carefully poked him in the chest, not missing his small wince at the contact. "I think you just need to get a sense of humor, Sa~su~ke." She also didn't miss the way his body tensed and his left eye slightly twitch as she said his name. Glancing down, she turned to the side and held the kit up, smiling brightly up at him. "Isn't that right, Kyoun?"

The fox nodded his small head, making Sakura's expression brighten as she pulled him close. She felt a warm hand slide into hers and felt someone tugging her along. Her blinking eyes glanced down and, her gaze running up the arm, she realized that it was Sasuke pulling her toward the kitchen. She wasn't sure of how she should've reacted, but when he let go of her hand right before they entered the kitchen, she suprisingly missed the warmth of his touch.

Pushing that fact aside, she went to sit at the table, Kyoun patiently sitting in her lap. She could feel multiple sets of eyes on her and she looked up to see Sasuke looking at her but then he quickly looked away. Then she glanced over to her left and saw that Kakashi was watching her. She frowned at him as she requested the devilish twinkle in his eyes, no doubt smirking at her under his mask. They seemed to be the only two looking at her as they waited for Naruto to show up.

Sasuke wasn't sure why he had grabbed Sakura's hand, he had just wanted to and acted on impulse. Though when he had let go of it, he had to stop himself from grabbing her hand again. He instantly found himself missing her warmth, even though he wasn't exactly sure why. He had been irritated at first because of the small kit, but when he saw her smiling up at him, the irritation had quickly vanished. Looking up across the table, the Uchiha frowned at the look Kakashi was giving him. Clearly he knew something had happened and he was just refraining from saying anything.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Breakfast was hardly eventful, unless you counted the daily routine of Naruto and Sasuke bickering and calling each other names. Man, they truly acted like twelve year olds. The realization made Sakura feel extremely old campared to their immature and innocent minds. Kakashi acted older than what he really was and so it was a bit more comforting to be around him and she noticed that in that little bit of time since she told him her secret, he had showed her a bit more respect than the other two, though not really enough to make them notice. The pinkette was actually surprised that Kakashi had believed her so easily. Although, since that time, the copy ninja had managed to squeeze some rather interesting questions by her that only those close to him would even know about.

She watched from the trees above, with Kyoun sprawled out on top of her head, as her teammates made even more progress that day with their chakra control. She had paid more attention to her new kit's growing personality than her two teammates' performance however. She noticed that, not only did Kyoun like to play with hair and snuggle up to it, he also seemed to have an attraction to the Uchiha. Kyoun had tried multiple times to play with the male even when others were closer to him and definitely more willing. Though she knew for certain that the kit enjoyed her company the most, she couldn't help but find his tastes odd. Naruto was obviously more willing to play with him even after their little 'episode'. And even Kakashi had tried to snuggle up to the playful bundle of fur. Yet, out of her whole team, the kit still insisted on messing with Sasuke.

Sakura tilted her head slightly in confusion and could feel Kyoun shift on top of her, trying to get back into a comfortable positon. Once he stopped moving, she shifted her head back to it's original position, making the kit have to move again as he let out a disapproving noise. The kunoichi smiled at the noise and stilled so he could get comfy again on top of her pink locks.

Now that she thought it through, maybe Sasuke's personality was the whole reason why Kyoun was so attached to him. It would be natural for the kit to get into something that he wasn't supposed to. And with Sasuke not wanting to play yet not punish, the whole thing was probably a challenge for the small animal. To see which one would win, if Sasuke would win when Kyoun finally gave up or if Sasuke would give in and play with him. The whole thing made Sakura bubble up with joy and excitement. She couldn't wait for the results of their little game.

Suddenly, her mood turned serious. What would happen tomorrow during the battle? She knew that they would win, but what about the baby currently sleeping in her hair? She couldn't take the chances of him getting hurt. Wait. . . If she remembered correctly, Naruto would wake up later tomorrow and help the bridge builder's grandson with rescuing his mother. But. . . she still didn't want to take that chance. Maybe she could leave him somewhere safe until the battle ended and return for him. That would be the most logical choice of action.

Movement under her caught the kunoichi's eye and she watched as Sasuke made a new mark to the tree next to hers. He flipped backward and fell to the ground. She blinked down at him and it wasn't long until he came running back up the tree and made an even higher scratch mark on the tree with his kunai. At the very last second, the fox saw him and jumped off of Sakura's head and towards the Uchiha.

"No Kyoun." Sakura jumped off the branch and grabbed him before he could reach the male as he jumped away from the tree. The kunoichi wrapped her arms around the kit and pushed off of the tree that was just slashed at and into a nearby branch. She set the kitsune down on the wood and frowned down at him as she sat cross legged in front of him. He seemed to know that he was in trouble by the way his body slouched and his ears drooped as he curled his tail around his body.

"You know what you did was wrong, don't you?" the kunoichi scolded. Kyoun nodded slightly, his head facing downward. "Good, don't go approaching those two while they're training, at least not until you're bigger, okay?" The kit nodded again. Sakura sighed and reached forward to start rubbing one of his ears between her thumb and index finger. "I just don't want you getting hurt because you happen to like messing with Sasuke."

"Is that why the fur ball is constantly messing with me?" asked the Uchiha as he jumped onto a branch beside her.

"Yeah." she nodded. Kyoun's ears immidiantly perked up at the sound of Sasuke's voice and he looked over at him. He looked back at Sakura with a pleading sort of look, silently asking for permission. The pinkette sighed and rubbed her temples, closing her eyes. "Go ahead."

The pinkette could hear a startled yell as the Uchiha was knocked backward from the tree branch. Sakura yawned into her palm lazily as she heard the male collide with the ground at the bottom with a loud grunt.

Sasuke groaned as he reached a hand up to place it on the animal on his chest. "Sakura." he growled as he glared up at the kunoichi smirking down at him from the high tree branches. Damnit, he should have seen that coming.

"Hey, Sasuke!" Naruto called, still running up the tree to get farther than he did last time. "What do you think you're doing taking a break?"

"I'm not taking a break, loser! I just got pounded by this runt." the Uchiha grunted as he picked up the kit that was trying to make his careful escape. "And where do you think you're going?" He watched as the small animal turned around with sad, blue eyes and made a whining sound. Sasuke frowned at it, his temper slowly disappearing. "You're lucky your owner is scary, otherwise I'd kick your ass."

"Ohhh, you just don't wanna hurt him because he's too cute." spoke Sakura knowingly, suddenly kneeling beside him.

The Uchiha turned his head to frown at her and pulled Kyoun up to sit him on his chest. Sakura could hear the concern laced in his voice as he asked, "What would you have done if he got hurt, Sakura?"

Her smiling face instantly brightened at the way the Uchiha had disregarded himself even though he was the one that had fallen out of the tree. "I wouldn't let that happen."

Sasuke let a small smile cross his lips as he sat up, Kyoun falling into his lap and mewling up at the dark haired male. But all too quickly, his smile disappeared into a frown as the small animal crawled up his chest and sat down on his shoulder, playing with the dark strands of his bangs.

Sakura let out a small laugh as the two continued to watch each other until Naruto came running up to them, finger swiping under his nose.

"What are you guys doing?" he asked, oblivous to their silent staring contest.

Sakura turned her attention up at the blonde, smiling slyly. "Didn't you see the battle, Naruto? Kyoun beat up Sasuke!"

Naruto instantly let out an amused cackle while she felt Sasuke's glare set on her. Sakura smiled innocently and playfully stuck her tongue out at him. His glare turned into an exhausted expression as he sighed, grabbing ahold of the kit and pulling him off his shoulder.

"Playing aside, are you alright, Sasuke?" The Uchiha nodded and closed his eyes before sitting Kyoun on the ground in front of him. Sakura's jade orbs moved away from him and looked upward to meet blue. "Ready to get some food, Naruto?"

His smirk faded and was replaced with a pout. "Awww, I wanna keep training so I can beat Sasuke!"

Sakura stood up firmly, a frown set in place as she placed her hands on her hips. "You need to eat first, _then_ you can go back to training to beat Sasuke."

Naruto's head and shoulders slumped in defeat as he nodded glumly. Sakura's frown deepened when she heard the one behind her begin to chuckle. The pinkette whipped her head around and looked down at the smirking male. "That goes for you too, mister."

Said 'mister' opened his eyes and glared up at her. They silently stared at each other, both unrelenting. After a few moments, Sakura raised an eyebrow at him expectantly and then he sighed, getting up. Kyoun had somehow managed to crawl up his body and jump into his dark locks, even after he was placed on the ground. Sakura smiled whilst Naruto smirked while the Uchiha walked away and grumbled about the 'damn fox' and 'annoying female'.

He listened as the other two fell in step behind him and continued to chuckle about the animal in his hair. Sasuke gritted his teeth, feeling the kit making himself even more comfortable in his hair. The male wasn't sure if he had it in him to hurt the kit and he really didn't have the desire to, although he did want the small animal to stop making a bed out of his dark locks. Sighing, Sasuke grabbed the kit by the scruff of the neck and brought him down to hold him against the front of his blue shirt, drawing out a sound of disapprovement from the small animal. Sasuke held him tightly however, as Kyoun watched him and swished his tail back and forth as if waiting for any sort of opportunity to arise for him to get back in those dark locks.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Kakashi blinked at the image he was met with as his three students walked into the house. The fact that Naruto and Sakura were laughing at the same time was nothing new to him, but. . . a baby fox making itself comfortable in Sasuke's hair was a different story. Though Kakashi knew better than to bring up the issue as the Uchiha shot him a glare and pulled the kit out of his now messed up hair.

Sakura continued to laugh as she took Kyoun from his grasp before he somehow ended up hurting the poor thing. She ignored Sasuke's glare as she held the kit out in front of her, a warm, gentle smile lighting her features. "Though its hilarious, you have to stop messing with Sasuke's hair, Kyoun." she laughed as she leaned in to whisper in his ear, though still loud enough for the others to hear. "You see, he's very sensitive about it."

She pulled back smiling brightly as Naruto roared back in laughter and Sasuke continued to glare at her. Even Kakashi chuckled softly at her comment. Kyoun made a small noise in understanding as he looked at her. "Good." Sakura said, before turning the kit around and holding him out so that he faced Sasuke. "Now, say you're sorry."

Blue and onyx eyes stared at each other for awhile, so long that the whole room fell deathly silent, waiting for what would happen next. Everyone watched as the two stared at each other, Sakura still holding up the kit until she got what she wanted. Finally, the kit let out a small, whiny noise that made the kunoichi's heart melt. Sighing in annoyance, Sasuke placed his hand on the animal's head and rustled his fur, ears flapping back and forth while he did so.

"You three really are an odd sight." spoke the bridge builder, who had witnessed the whole scene. Sakura grinned widely at the old man and hugged Kyoun to her chest lovingly before turning a soft smile to the Uchiha.

He wasn't sure why but the sight made his heart skip a beat and his face to flush slightly. Looking for anything to distract him from her radiant smile, he focused on the animal in her arms, that just happened to be staring at him. Sasuke frowned, recognizing the look he had in his eyes. _Ugh_.

Luckily at that moment, Naruto decided to cut into the small moment as he slung his arm around the Uchiha's shoulders, making Sasuke frown at him. "Why are you on me, loser?"

"_Because Teme_," he started. Sakura tilted her head to the familiar nickname she had heard Naruto call Sasuke many times back in her old time, though it made everyone else look at him quizzically. "I don't need you stealing all of the attention."

Smirking, the pinkette watched as the Uchiha scoffed and shrugged the blonde off. Sasuke watched silently as Naruto chatted away and made his way to the pink haired female, an unsettling feeling creeping into him the closer the blonde got to her. Shrugging it off as nothing, he made his way further into the room and tried his best to ignore the way Sakura's laugh caused his chest to flutter.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

After they ate lunch, Sakura stayed inside the house for awhile as Sasuke and Naruto went back outside to continue their training. She soon found that staying there happened to be very boring so she decided to go check up on the boys' work, Kyoun following behind her. When she got there, she noticed that they weren't doing that bad, although Naruto was still a little behind the Uchiha. He was quickly catching up however, with the advice she had given him the day before on chakra control. Just watching them train made her want to as well. Her fingers were itching for a good work out but she could wait for tomorrow. Before the males could see her standing behind them, she jumped up into a far enough away tree to watch them as she made herself comfortable on one of the branches, Kyoun nestling into her lap.

Soon night fell and the two exhausted boys reached the top. Sakura's eyes followed their movements as they went back down to the bottom. The kunoichi was expecting them to go back to the house but she was slightly surprised when they sprawled out on the ground and looked up into the sky. She moved silently through the branches and got into hearing range behind them.

"Hey dobe." the Uchiha suddenly spoke up. He wasn't sure why he was about to ask this, but he just had the urge to. It had been eating at him all day and he really wanted to know.

"What is it, Sasuke?" the blonde asked, his breathing still labored from the work that they had done.

"How much do you know about Sakura?" This question caught the pinkette off gaurd. Why would Sasuke want to know about her?

"Well, I've lived with her for years so there's not that much that I don't know. Why?"

"Just wondering." Sasuke replied, looking up into the stars that shone brightly back at them. He wasn't willing to admit it, but maybe he might need Naruto's help if he were to understand Sakura a bit more. The kunoichi had managed to throw him off many times; when she had been there when his family was murdered, when she had checked up on him every week after that, why she would treat him so kindly as if he weren't a tattered soul, and how she could understand him like no other. There was just so much about her that he didn't know.

The pinkette watched as Naruto nodded his head and continued talking in a sad tone. "Though there are times when I see her spacing out and she looks so sad. When that happens, I feel like I might not know her at all."

Sakura's heart dropped and her expression turned into one that of sorrow. She didn't mean for him to see her like that. She wasn't even aware that he would look at her while she was reminiscing about the old days. 'I'm so sorry, Naruto.'

Sasuke frowned, finding it hard to imangine an actual frown on Sakura's features. "I've never seen her like that. She's always got some sort of smile or scowl on her face."

"That's because you always give her something to scowl at, Teme." Naruto remarked, slightly amused by his comment.

"That's not true, twerp." the Uchiha scowled at the blonde.

Sakura felt so many conflicting emotions rushing through her as she continued to listen to the two of them talk. She felt shame, guilt, sadness. So many different things. Why hadn't she been more observant to her actions? She must have been deep in thought those times to not have noticed Naruto staring and if he could tell that something was wrong with her. He was usually so oblivious to those types of things.

"You like her, don't you, Sasuke?" the blonde asked without hesitation.

Now that especially got her attention. Surprise and strangely anticipation started to ebb at her ears, surprise that Naruto would ask and anticipation for Sasuke's answer. She was strangely nervous for some reason.

"What? No." the dark haired male responsed all too quickly, a soft flush coating his cheeks and neck at the way the blonde had been so blunt. But then again, that was just Naruto being Naruto.

"You're lying, Teme." the blonde shinobi laughed. "I can tell by the way you're blushing. You like Sakura!"

"Shut up!" Sasuke hissed, embarressment coursing through him that Naruto had found out his attraction that he had barely come to terms with himself yet.

Sakura watched the argument between them with amusement. Maybe she would succeed at this mission afterall. If Sasuke had feelings for her then that would make it that much easier for him to stay. Though she felt guilty about the fact that she wouldn't want him to stay for her own feelings this time around. Then again, it would be a selfless act in and of itself, it was for Konoha's future. Shouldn't that be a way better reason to ask him to stay than for her? She at least hoped so.

"Why don't you tell her?" the blonde suddenly asked, breaking the silence that had entered between the two.

Sasuke frowned as he narrowed his eyes at the dark sky. "Mind your business, Naruto." Why _didn't_ he tell her how he felt? Maybe he didn't feel good enough for her. His frown deepened at the thought. It was true in a way; the Uchiha didn't exactly feel like he was the best canditate for her in terms of a relationship. He didn't exactly deserve someone that seemed so pure and he didn't want to take the chance of his curroptness tainting her in any way.

"Come onnn, tell meee." Naruto persisted.

The Uchiha groaned, "Don't you have feelings for her, loser?"

The blonde let out a soft laugh before replying, "Nah. I'll admit I used to when we were younger but now I look at her like a sister."

Sakura drawled out the rest of their conversation as she fully laid down on the tree branch, looking up at the starry sky as her thoughts took over. She missed all of her old friends. She missed being able to fully connect with Naruto and tell him everything. She missed being at the hospital and helping her patients live and get better. But as she looked closer and deeper, she realized that she had missed spending time with Sasuke as well.

It was odd, having the sort of relationship she had with him now after he had been so distant and angry for so long in her past. It was a drastic change and it left an odd feeling in her chest everytime she spoke to him. And from what she had seen so far, he actually valued her opinions and cared for what she had to say to him most of the time, whenever she didn't get on his nerves too much or too often. She also noticed that he had been showing Naruto a bit more respect than he did in her past. The thought made her smile. Maybe there _was_ hope for him after all.

Sakura was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't realize that the two males had left awhile ago. In fact, so much time had passed, the two genin had made it back to the house and realized that she wasn't there. The kunoichi was finally pulled out her musings when she heard someone shouting her name. Sitting up and looking over the edge, she watched a head of dark hair walk around under her.

"Sakura!" he shouted again, though she failed to notice the concern that was laced in her voice.

The kunoichi jumped down and landed silently behind him, leaving Kyoun to look down at her from his sitting position on the branch. "Sasuke?" He turned around with surprise on his features as she looked at him quizzically. "What are you doing out here?"

She tilted her head in confusion as he frowned at her. "I should be asking _you_ that. What do you think you were doing being out here at night by yourself?" Although he was relieved that she was alright, that didn't mean that he wasn't upset with her. Just because nothing had happened to her then didn't mean that she wouldn't get hurt the next time she was alone at night.

Sakura could visibly see his temper rising at her and she felt like she was a child being scolded by an adult for doing something wrong. "I was just thinking." She watched as he clenched his fists and narrowed his eyes at her. The look he was giving her was bringing back so many unwanted memories; when he didn't care, when he pushed them aside, when he tried to kill them. . . Tears started to fill the corners of her eyes before she couldn't even stop them.

"Sorry." she mumbled weakly, staring into his onyx eyes that immidiantly started to calm down.

Sasuke's mouth slowly parted and his jaw slacked as he looked at her, a feeling of guilt for her sudden distress settling into his gut. His hands relaxed and hanged loosely at his sides. The Uchiha watched silently as Sakura's head slowly fell in defeat. He didn't mean to upset her. He didn't want to upset her. . . "Sakura."

The pinkette didn't move when she felt a warm hand touch her shoulder. A single tear rolled down her cheek as the memories started to torture her mind. But then the kunoichi's body tensed when arms wrapped around her. Sakura's shock instantly overwhelmed the pain that had previously racked her mind.

"S-Sasuke?" Her eyes were as wide as saucers when she realized that his embrace wasn't an accident and that he had no intention of pulling away.

"Sorry." he whispered into her ear and she could hear the sincerity in his voice. He had apologized and he meant it, the realization of it making her heart flutter.

Her stomach was doing flip flops all over the place and she suddenly felt like she was going to throw up. Luckily, before she actually did puke all over the male's shoulder and back, Naruto showed up, yelling out her name. Sasuke slowly pulled back and placed his hands on her shoulders, looking at her with a serious expression.

Jade orbs glanced up into his onyx eyes and saw an emotion that she had never seen before. In her past and during that time that she spent growing up with him, she had never seen such raw feeling swirling in those mysterious eyes of his and it left her feeling dangerously weak.

Naruto had caught up to them and by the time he managed to stand behind her, he was bending over and panting. "I'm glad you found her, Teme." he managed to rasp out.

Sakura's bottom lip began to tremble as she fought back a crashing wave of multiple emotions. Her vision started to blur as she stared at the male in front of her. They had both been looking for her, both concerned for her well being, but the realization that Sasuke had been worried for her made her want to cry for some reason. It made her think about how much had changed and how much she missed the way things were. Then again, she was glad; glad that things had changed for the better. And yet. . . even if it were for the better, it still didn't change the fact that she had lost everyone and everything she had known. And there was a possibility that she couldn't ever get it back. . .

"What's wrong? Is Sakura hurt?" asked Naruto, concern edged in his voice.

Out of the corner of her eye, the pinkette saw Naruto coming to stand beside the Uchiha, his eyes widening as he stared at her. She looked over at him and that was her downfall. She had kept her emotions so much in check but now the tears wailed as they poured down her cheeks. She let out a choked sob as she watched him. "Naruto." Yet with the tears falling down in small rivers, she still held herself back, clenching her fists and resisting the urge to run into his arms.

"Its alright to let go, Sakura." she heard Kakashi say behind her. When had he shown up?

"No." she replied sharply, lowering her head to glare at the ground, bangs covering her face. "A shinobi should never reveal their weaknesses." That was what she had told herself many times before and that was what kept her from breaking down, although it didn't seem to be making a huge difference at that moment like it used to.

"I believe you can be the exception for that rule this once." he said, placing a comforting hand on her head just like he used to in her past when she involuntarily needed emotional support.

"Damnit!" she yelled, clenching her fists as a new onslaught of tears erupted from her eyes. The kunoichi's legs gave out and she fell to the ground, landing on her hands and knees and clenching her eyes shut. Bringing her hands to her face, she let out a heart wrenching sob into them. "Kakashi-sensei, why is this so hard?!"

The two younger males were completely shocked by the scene in front of them as Kakashi leaned down and pulled Sakura into his arms, cradling her on his knee and against his chest as she continued to sob.

"I've never seen her act like this." Naruto said weakly, feeling completely torn by Sakura's cries.

"Sorry." Sasuke mumbled. "She started acting this way when I found her and yelled at her for being out here by herself." He had no idea that she would react like that, if he did then he wouldn't have said anything to her at all. Each sob that left her lips and each tear that fell down her cheeks reaked havoc on him, tearing at his own resolve as his chest tightened.

"This isn't your fault, Sasuke."

The Uchiha adverted his eyes from the pink haired girl and over at the blonde. What he saw was shocking to say the least. Naruto's body was trembling as tears of his own fell down his whiskered cheeks. His eyes were filled with numerous emotions. Sorrow, concern, but most of all, what Sasuke could see overpowering the rest. . . was fear.

"I have _never_ seen Sakura cry since I moved into her home. Not once since the day she first came to me has she shed a tear. She wouldn't act this way just because you yelled at her."

Sasuke felt dread run through him as he looked back at the female. Though it was reassuring to hear that he wasn't the cause of her tears, it did nothing to comfort the dark haired male. The Uchiha could feel Kyoun jumped down onto his shoulder but didn't stop him as the kit crawled up into his hair and whined. The action brought a bit of comfort to the male but still didn't change the horrid feeling clouding him.

All too soon for anyone to feel comfortable, Sakura forced down the rest of her tears and wiped at her face. "Ugghh." she groaned, putting her arms out in front of her and placing her hands on the top of her head. "My head hurts."

"Are you alright for now?" Kakashi asked, helping her to stand up and face him.

Sakura nodded and held her hands out in front of her. Putting healing chakra into her index fingers, she made sure that the two behind her couldn't see as she applied the chakra to her swollen eyes, getting rid of the ache behind them and the red, puffiness that was there as well.

"I bet that comes in handy in more ways than that." Kakashi said, referring to her healing abilities.

"Yeah." Sakura replied, giving him a weak smile. "I have a feeling I'm gonna need it tomorrow. Thank you, Kakashi-sensei."

The copy ninja nodded and placed a hand on her head to ruffle her hair. Sakura let a weak, guinine smile cross her lips at the man. Turning around, she rubbed her right eye as she looked at the two stunned males behind her.

"I'm sorry you guys." she mumbled, watching as the two visibly relaxed.

Naruto slumped his shoulders and let out a reliefed sigh. "Are you okay now, Sakura?"

"Yeah." she nodded and wasn't at all surprised when he pulled her into a bone crushing hug. The kunoichi blinked a few times and listened as he told her not to scare him like that ever again. She made an afformitive noise and wrapped her arms around him, nuzzling her nose against his shoulder. At that moment, all Sakura wanted to do was hold onto the blonde for the rest of the day, but, unfortunately, she had to pull back because there was still one other person there that needed her attention. Sakura took a tentative step toward the Uchiha and looked at him warily. Would he think that she was weak? That she was a crybaby? She hoped not. She really hoped he didn't and she was about what his reaction would be.

"Sorry." she mumbled.

Sakura was relieved when he let out a lengthy sigh and weakly smiled at her. "Its alright."

His response made a bright smile appear on her lips as she wrapped her arms around his stomach and back, pulling him into a warm embrace. "Thank you, Sasuke." she whispered against his ear. She knew that he would never know why she was truly thanking him, but that thought didn't matter to her. The kunoichi was just glad that he didn't look at her any differently than he did before.

He nodded in return and awkwardly embraced her back. The pinkette oddly felt content when he wrapped his arms around her this time. But she wasn't going to take the chance of her stomach storming up again so she slowly pulled back and was a bit surprised when the Uchiha held her for a moment longer than necessary. Stepping away from him, Sakura started rubbing at her eyes again. "Aw man." she whined. "Now I got a migraine."

"Do you want to take something when we get back?"

Glancing at the dark haired male frowning at her, she let out a small laugh at the sight of Kyoun on the male's head. "No its fine, Kakashi-sensei. I'll take care of it later."

"Alright." he nodded, "Let's head back then."

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

The next day came quickly enough and Sakura was especially tense. She knew they would win, after all, they did last time and she was even stronger now. Hopefully everything would be better this time around. Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura ushered the bridge builder to the bridge, leaving Naruto asleep just like the last time.

The battle quickly approached. The pinkette was strangely quiet the whole time as she stood in front of their objective. She wouldn't worry about Sasuke and Haku. Naruto would soon show up to help him. She had to keep an eye out for Zabuza. Things happened incredibly similar to the last time, except Sakura felt more useful this time around as she was able to block Zabuza's attacks and counter them when he made an attempt to get to the elderly man. It also wasn't that difficult to see through the mist this time around, her eyes long ago adjusting to such difficult surroundings.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sasuke didn't know what had caused him to do such a thing as he jumped in front of Naruto to keep him from getting hit. He just reacted and when Naruto had asked him why; that was what he had told him. As his breathing labored and became harsher, his body started to get weaker, slowly becoming numb. Almost as if he couldn't stop it, memories started to flash through the dark haired male's mind. Memories of the massacre, of when the team had formed, of when Naruto and him argued, and of- No, he couldn't die. Not yet. He still had so much to do. He still had to kill Itachi and avenge his clan. He still had to be around to pick on Naruto. He still had to be around for-

The Uchiha's body fell to the ground and he barely registered it when the blonde had knelt down beside him, screaming his name. Not feeling that his body was being turned around to lie on his back, Sasuke looked up into wide, blue eyes for a moment before his head tilted weakly to the side to look through the fog where he imagined a certain kunoichi was. "Sakura. . ." he whispered out before his eyes fluttered close and his world slowly spiraled into nothingness. _Damnit no_. He couldn't die yet. He didn't want to leave them. Didn't want to leave her. . . '_Sakura_.'

Please review :)


	5. Enemies and Friends

Thank you to those of you who have reviewed. :) I do plan on this being a long story and I'm glad that you guys are excited about where it goes. Thanks for telling me what you liked about the story so far, it lets me know what I'm doing right and how I should go about things. Thanks again and I hope you enjoy this chapter too :)

Also, I was asked a question about their age for the earlier chapters. I was never quite sure how old Sasuke was when the massacre happened, but I imagine that he was somewhere between the ages of 7 and 9, so that's the general age I had them at during the beginning chapters. Then when chapter three comes around, they're twelve. I hope this helped you, DiizGiirlJess, and for any others that were confused or concerned by that detail. :) Please enjoy :)

Chapter 5: Enemies and Friends

Jade eyes watched as a familar body collapsed to the ground and a feeling of concern and dread filled her. Although he had lived last time, there was no gaurantee that he had survived this time around and that thought scared her. Sakura turned around, grabbed the builder's hand and asked, "Can we go to Sasuke, bridge builder?"

He nodded at her and she began to pull him along, frowning as she watched Naruto grab Sasuke's limp body. She quickened her pace with hope and determination coursing through her veins. Letting go of the hand, she almost reached them when she felt very familiar chakra build up. Her eyes widened in shock as she watched red chakra swirl around Naruto, his fists clenching together as his whiskers became more apparant and sharper. Sakura jumped backward and held an arm out in front of the bridge builder as she yelled, "Get back!"

She watched as Haku removed his mask and Naruto looked at him in surprise. Seeing her chance, she took it and rushed over to grab Sasuke and placed him on the ground off to the side where she was standing not even a second ago. An unsettling feeling flowed through her as she checked his pulse and found that it was no longer there. Forcing her breathing to calm down, she quickly checked each place that he got hit and let out a relieved, shaky breath when she found that all of his vitals were unharmed. He's going to be alright. . .

"Is he alive?" the bridge builder asked, looking over the pinkette's shoulder.

"No." she shook her head and ran her fingers through his hair lovingly. "But he'll be back. I trust him." The kunoichi wore a sad smile as she looked over the male's features. It was upsetting yet relieving at the same time. Just the fact that his heart wasn't working was depressing, yet she knew that he would be back. He would come back to them.

Sakura stood and swung around, her kunai deflecting a stray sunbon needle. She watched as Naruto fell to the ground and Haku about to finish him off from the look of it, but he stopped at the last second. She watched his movements carefully as he ran passed them and into Kakashi's line of fire.

Blood spilled from the boy's mouth as he stood in front of Zabuza, protecting him. Sakura continued to watch as he gripped Kakashi's wrist and the assassin behind him readied another attack, making the kunoichi grit her teeth angrily. The rest happened just like the last time, Naruto yelling and Zabuza hacking at the bandits. Sakura curiously turned around when she heard someone having a coughing fit. She saw Sasuke's eyes start to flutter open. "Bridge builder, can you carry him for me please? I have something important I need to do." The old man nodded his head and carefully slid his arms under the Uchiha's legs and back, carefully picking him up.

"S-Sakura?" the male mumbled, his eyes slowly focusing onto a head of pink hair. And what a lovely sight it was for him.

"Welcome back, Sasuke." she smiled at him and wiped her thumb over his chin to collect the drop of blood there. His eyebrows furrowed in return, making her smile brighten. He had come back sooner than last time and seeing his eyes open, looking back at her, made her heart warm with mirth and relief. Her expression turning back serious, she turned and began to make her way over to the Wave shinobi on the ground.

"Sakura?" Naruto had seen the Uchiha's eyes open and his own eyes were wide as he looked up at the pinkette with surprise and concern on his face. "How is Sasuke?"

"He's alright. But I'm gonna need you to step back." she replied, stretching out her arm in front of him. She could feel him pull away far enough to satisfy her. The other thugs were running for their lives and jumping off the edge of the bridge as she watched Kakashi bring Zabuza over and lay him next to Haku.

Sakura stepped closer to the couple as she stood at their feet. "Kakashi-sensei. You're gonna want to step back for this."

"What are you doing, Sakura?" her sensei asked.

"You'll see in a moment but please, I need silence to do this. I don't have much time to waste." Sakura let out a long, calming breath and quickly bit the underside of each fingertip. Once all ten fingers were bleeding, she did multiple difficult hand signs at lightening speed and slammed her right hand over her stomach. The seal around her navel started to glow red and swirl furiously around in circles as her chakra roared to life and lashed out around her.

Sakura let out a painful scream at the sudden pain of having all of her chakra flow through her all at once, but she immidiantly got over the pain and sat in between Zabuza and Haku. Placing a fiercely, glowing hand over the young male's wound, she poured healing chakra into it, instantly going back into medic mode that had stuck with her everyday since she got her medic license. She gritted her teeth, doing her best to seal up the damage as she felt his very last heart beat.

"No!" she yelled, though she never stopped. Placing her other hand over his heart, she applied chakra to the extremely weak organ.

"It is useless kunoichi. Haku. . . is gone."

Sakura snapped her head to the left to glare at the Wave assassin. "SHUT UP!" she shouted, her voice echoing loudly through the area. "Once I get both of you on your feet again, _I'm gonna kick your ass!_" Whipping her head back down to look at the broken boy, she could feel angry tears threatening to appear at the corners of her jade orbs. No one had ever dared to tell her that it was useless to try to save a patient. They had known better than that, because nobody questioned her abilities and nerve. She would get Haku back if it was the last thing she did.

"Foolish woman."

"I wouldn't underestimate her abilities if I were you, Zabuza." Kakashi said, watching the pink haired kunoichi as her green, healing chakra seemed to flow over the ninja's body.

"Damnit Haku! Don't you _dare_ do this!" Sakura yelled and relief flooded through her when she felt his heart flutter. It was incredibly weak. In fact, if she hadn't been so exceptional at being Konoha's best medic, she would've missed the small flutter completely. A bright, relieved smile grazed her lips when she felt it again. She watched as his wound started to close up and his heart started to beat more frequently.

The kunoichi didn't care that she let a tear slide down her cheek as she continued to heal him. She was thankful for every single harsh training session Tsunade had put her through. She was thankful for all the hell she went through to reach the level she was currently at. She was thankful when all that hard work paid off as blood spluttered out of Haku's mouth and he took a large inhale of fresh air. Some blood had landed on her cheek as she leaned over him but she didn't care. Feeling that it was safe to remove the hand from his wound, she placed her right hand over his heart and moved her left hand to tend to Zabuza's wounds.

Sakura looked over the tall man and tended to his more serious injuries as he stared at Haku in shock. She smirked at his expression, "Just don't forget that I'm gonna kick your ass later, alright?"

She watched as he looked up at her, tears running down his bruised cheeks. "H-how?"

"I have my ways." she replied, knowing that he was refering to the fact that Haku was now taking in deep, shaky breaths beside her. Sakura turned her head to the side to look at the boy beside her. She watched as his eyes slowly started to move and he let out a fit of coughs, small amounts of blood escaping him. "Don't move or you'll reopen the wound." she spoke softly.

Haku slowly tilted his head to weakly look at her, his eyes beginning to focus as he watched the outline of a tear fall from her eyes. His lower lip trembled as his mouth slowly parted. "Don't talk either, okay? It'll take up too much energy." He closed his mouth and turned his head to the right, his eyes widening at the man beside him.

"Don't speak yet, Haku. Listen to the kunoichi." Zabuza said, already knowing that Haku would want to speak to him. The young male nodded slightly and closed his eyes, still feeling incredibly weak.

Sakura bit her lower lip in concentration as she continued to heal the two almost completely. "Alright." she breathed out, standing up once she was done, her tears long gone. The sudden movement gave her a raging headache and her body slightly swayed but she regained her balance as she made her way over to the beaten up body in the bridge builder's arms. Sasuke's eyes were wide as he stared at her but she dismissed his shocked look.

"This might hurt a bit." she said before starting to pull the needles out of his skin, applying her healing chakra to each hole that was left in return to pulling the offending weapons out. She could see him wince the first few times she pulled the needles out but he soon got over the pain. She could feel his heart beat speeding up as she continued to heal him, which made her smile. Once she finished attending to him, she moved to make her way over to Naruto. Her vision darkened and her body went completely numb with fatigue.

"Ah, hell." she groaned before she lost consciousness and her body started to fall forward.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled as he ran forward and caught her in his arms before she could hit the ground. His blue orbs were laced with concern and he looked up to see Sasuke shrugging out of the bridge builder's grasp before running to stand next to him.

The Uchiha watched carefully as Naruto looked down at the pink haired bundle, frowning. His onyx eyes raked over the kunoichi's exhausted features, though at that moment, he didn't care for anything other than her well being.

"Naruto, let Sasuke carry her back. You're too exhausted to bring her back." Kakashi said, going over to check the two Wave shinobi's healed wounds.

Reluctantly, but without objection, Naruto pulled Sakura fully into his arms and handed her over to the frowning Uchiha. Sasuke continued to look over her features as he tightened his hold on her, suddenly noticing how her features seemed to make her look older than what she actually was.

He wasn't sure why he was still alive, but he had woken back up to her smiling face, relief and concern clear in her eyes. Relief and concern over him and it brought a feeling of warmth to his chest. But now he had to silently watch as she slept in his arms, her face contorted in concentration and exhaustion and a frown on her lips. The hand that was under her back snaked up to gently stroke her cheek. Hopefully she would wake up soon.

The Uchiha didn't bother to look up as the group began to walk back to the village, and he was shocked when Kakashi had managed to walk up next to him without the young male noticing. Sasuke still didn't look up however, even as the copy ninja placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"She'll be alright Sasuke."

The dark haired male nodded in reply. He knew she would be. He trusted her.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura groaned and placed her hand over her aching forehead. Not even thinking about doing it, her hands glowed a soft green as she remedied the ache that was raging through her entire skull.

"Ah, so you've woken?"

Sakura slowly opened her right eye, only to close it and cringe when a bright light met her vision, bringing back her monsterous headache. "Is that you, Haku?"

"Yes."

She could also feel many more chakra signatures in the room. Focusing on them, she instantly picked out Naruto's, Kakashi's, and Sasuke's.

"Zabuza's the only one not in here." she grunted, applying more healing chakra to her aching head.

"He is outside." Haku replied calmly.

Sakura nodded her head and slowly opened her eyes to adjust to the room's light as she began to sit up, her muscles protesting for her to stay still.

"You shouldn't move yet. You're still quite weak." Haku softly spoke as he gently put a hand behind her back and the other on her shoulder for balance.

"I'm alright, Haku. Thank you." she said, giving him a weak smile.

"No." he shook his head, "It is I who should thank _you_."

Sakura looked at him in bewilderment until it dawned on her. Then her expression softened, "You're welcome, Haku." The kunoichi then turned her attention to her stomach, frowning when she saw the cherry blossoms still swirling in activation around her navel. Sakura gritted her teeth. "Damnit, no wonder I feel so damned tired."

Biting each finger on her right hand, she did the appropriate hand signs that Tsunade had shown her and slammed her palm against her stomach. She let out a groan of pain and exhaustion as the seal started to calm, the petals slowly settling into one place. The kunoichi closed her eyes and fell back against the bed that she was placed on, Haku letting go of her. "I can't wait 'till Shishou gets this damned thing off of me." she grumbled to herself, knowing that no one else had a clue about what she was complaining about.

"You sure do have a foul mouth for a child."

Sakura didn't bother to open her eyes as she sensed Zabuza and another chakra signature enter the room. "Hey there, Zabuza." she replied. "Can you hand me Kyoun before you decide to tear him apart?" she asked seriously.

"So this little runt belongs to you? I found him running up to the house when he decided to be an ass and bite me."

"Now who has the foul mouth?" Sakura frowned and opened her eyes to look at the tall man as he tossed the small kitsune to her. She sat up quickly and gently caught the bundle of fur in her arms, surprised that Zabuza hadn't killed the poor kit. She smiled warmly down at him and decided to yell at him later for his disobeying and not staying put where she left him.

"What purpose did you have to keep Haku and I alive?"

The kunoichi looked up into the man's eyes, her expression unreadable as everyone watched her for a response. "I wish for an alliance with you two."

"An alliance?"

She nodded. "Yes, in exchange for saving your lives, you will lend your help when we need it most. Sound good?" she smiled.

Zabuza narrowed his eyes at her, crossing his arms over his chest. "What makes you think I'll agree to that?"

Sakura frowned at the man that was apparently trying to imtimidate her. "Because if you don't then I'll kick your ass, heal you, then kick your ass again." she taunted. The pinkette smirked as she watched him glare at her.

"I don't take threats from little girls!" he yelled.

Sakura's temper flared as she jumped up on the bed, Kyoun whining as he fell onto the mattress at her feet. She glared back at the Wave assassin, fists clenched. "You askin' for a fight old man?!"

"Sakura!" Kakashi yelled, making the pinkette sink her shoulders down slightly and look at him.

"What?" she whined and then everyone turned shocked expressions to the former assassin as he let out a loud, amused cackle.

The pinkette grinned as she waited for him to calm down. "So do we have a deal?"

"Fine." he spoke as he turned his attention back to her. "In repayment for your help, I will form an alliance with you."

Sakura smiled at him and then looked down at a smiling Haku. "You too, Haku, right?"

He continued to smile at her as he nodded, "Of course."

"Great." she beamed then her look turned into a curious one. "By the way, how long was I asleep?" she asked as she sat back down on the bed, the small animal jumping back into her lap to get comfortable.

"Five hours."

"That long?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. She turned her head to look over at Kakashi as he spoke from the other side of the room.

"You were depleted of most of your chakra. I'm surprised you're even awake at the moment."

Sakura frowned at him and looked around the room. Spotting figures to the left of the room, her frown deepened. It was hard to decipher what their gazes meant. "What's with the look you two are giving me?" She continued to stare at them as the two opened their mouths and then shut them again, making her eyebrow furrow.

"Sakura." The kunoichi looked back over at Kakashi as he continued. "To see the level your chakra was earlier, its only natural that they react like this."

The pinkette's eyebrows furrowed as she looked at the kit that had fallen asleep in her lap. "With the attack he got hit with, Haku should've been dead by the time I made it over to him with Zabuza's body. Yet you were still able to save him. Save both of them, in fact. Its an amazing accomplishment."

"You make it seem like I'm some kind of hero, Kakashi-sensei." Sakura grumbled, looking up to meet her sensei's eyes with a serious expression on her face. "When I'm not. If it wasn't for those two over there," she spoke, her voice firm as she pointed over at her two teammates. "if it weren't for Naruto and Sasuke then I would be the weakest one in this room, without a doubt. _They_ are the real heroes, pushing me to get stronger. Besides," she paused, lowering her arm and placing it on Kyoun's fur to pet it. "both of them will eventually surpass me anyway."

"Sakura." she heard Naruto's soft voice. Sakura frowned and looked over to see him walking over to her. She gazed up into his calm, blue eyes as he stopped in front of her. "You don't really mean that."

Her face softened and her jaw slacked, "Naruto." She felt warm arms wrap around her and pull her close. Her nose was buried into his stomach as he gently cradled her head. The kunoichi could feel Zabuza and Haku's chakra getting farther away as they exited the room. Sakura's budy slumped in defeat and she returned the embrace, clutching onto the back of his orange jacket.

"I'll just leave you three in here to discuss things." Kakashi spoke as, he too, exited the room, except shutting the door behind him, leaving the three genin in the room by themselves and away from prying ears and eyes.

Sakura pulled back a little and looked over to the silent Uchiha, holding out her hand toward him. He had an unreadable expression on his face and she didn't like it whatsoever. He continued to stare at her for a moment until finally walking over to her. But instead of accepting her hand like she wanted, he sat down on the bed beside her. She watched his onyx orbs as he stared at a certain part on the floor, a frown on his lips and his eyebrows furrowed a bit.

The kunoichi pulled back from Naruto's embrace and placed her hand on the dark haired male's shoulder. "I know you're especially upset about this, Sasuke."

"You don't know anything." he replied softly, turning his head in the opposite direction. Naruto made his way to sit on the bed on her other side as she stood up, frustration running through her veins. She knew talking to him wouldn't be easy, but he would _not_ ignore or dismiss her. Sakura moved to stand in front of him and put her hands on his cheeks, forcing him to look at her. He narrowed his eyes at her but made no movement to stop her. If he was being honest with himself, he didn't want to stop her from connecting their skin, instantly enjoying the way her hands heated up his cheeks.

"Don't you go and give me your withdrawal crap, Sasuke!" she barked, frustration ebbing at her very short thread of patience. "I have enough stuff to deal with than you being angry at me."

She watched as he gritted his teeth. "Then why bother talking to me if you're so busy with other things?" he snapped. It was something about the way she said those words that unnerved him, like she didn't want to be around him if she didn't have to, though he knew that that was far from the truth.

"Because I _refuse_ to let this dispute ruin our friendship, damnit. You're gonna tell me what's wrong and then we'll try to work on it. Got that?"

His glare intesified as he placed his hands over hers. "Sakura, let me go." he growled. He couldn't tell her what was wrong with him; that he was jealous over how powerful she had become and over the fact that she had cried when tending to Haku's wounds, as if she were afraid to lose him.

"No!" she shouted. "I'm not going to lose one of my best friends over something as stupid as power." She removed her right hand from his grip and wrapped it around him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Its not worth it."

Sasuke was speechless as he stared at the wall, his eyes widened slightly and his temper instantly dying. Yet again, Sakura knew exactly what was eating at him the most and how to calm him down, even though he had been ready to punch something. He was soon brought out of his thoughts however, to look at the blonde as he spoke, "Sakura's right, Teme. You can always get stronger but true friends aren't easy to get."

The Uchiha gaped at the blonde that suddenly had a strange sense of maturity in his blue orbs. His eyebrows furrowing, Sasuke closed his eyes and rested his chin on the pinkette's shoulder, returning the embrace as he gently held her. Then he began to wonder about what his life would've been like if he didn't have those two there, if they weren't there to help him like they had. He guessed that not that much would be different with Naruto except that he probably would've teased and taunted him more. The biggest change he could think of at the moment though, was his relationship with Sakura. He probably would've greatly disliked her from the very start. He frowned as his thoughts continued on the matter, not at all liking the idea of her not being there for him.

Sakura soon pulled back and looked into his onyx eyes. He stared quietly back at her. "Will you tell me exactly what's wrong?" she asked. They both knew she had the answer to his question, she just wanted to hear him admit it.

Sasuke sighed and closed his eyes. "I have a headache." he mumbled to no one in particuliar.

The kunoichi let out an exhuasted laugh as she placed her palms against his temples and poured healing chakra into them. She could feel his muscles start to relax at her touch, making her smile. "I could get used to this feeling." he mumbled appreciatively, tilting his head further into her touch.

Sakura frowned slightly at him, "Well don't be getting hurt on purpose just so I can heal your wounds, otherwise I'll stop doing it. I can't constantly waste chakra to heal your small boo boos."

"By the way, Sakura!" Said kunoichi looked over at the smirking blonde. "Where'd you learn such a cool trick? I want to learn it too!"

The pinkette blinked at the blonde for a moment until frowning again, "No offense Naruto, but learning how to heal takes up _a lot_ of chakra and requires _precise_ chakra control. If I teach it to you with your level of control, you'll end up snapping your ribs instead of healing your cuts."

Opening his eyes, Sasuke chuckled at Naruto's pout as Sakura pulled away from him, placing her hand on her hip as a smile took over her frown. "But maybe I can help you with your control once we get back to Konoha."

The blonde beamed up at her. "Really? Thanks Sakura!"

She nodded her head at him and looked back down at the Uchiha. "What do you say, Sasuke? Wanna join in training with us?" She watched his expressions carefully and was expecting the shake of his head for an answer. After a moment of silent watching, the kunoichi leaned over in front of him and stared into his eyes as she narrowed hers. "Is it because you think I don't have anything good to show you? Or is it because you think you'll suck so bad at it that you embarress yourself?"

She was quite satisfied when his calm features turned into a glare. "No way."

"Good." she smiled and stood up straight as she pulled his head to her chest and placed a chaste kiss on the top of it. Moving around him and crawling onto the bed, she continued, "Now you two get out, I want to get some more rest." Her back was to them as she placed her arm under her as if using it for a pillow.

Sasuke watched as she did so, a small flush lighting up his cheeks, remembering the feel of her lips on his head from just a moment before. Even though he couldn't feel the texture of her lips because of his hair, the Uchiha just knew that they were soft and he vaguely wished that he could feel them more personally.

"I don't think so, Sakura." grinned Naruto. "Kakashi-sensei specifically said that you had to eat after you woke up to regain your strength."

The pinkette turned her head and chest around to look up at him, a frown on her face. "But I don't want to eat right now, I'm still exhausted." She watched as Naruto exchanged glances with Sasuke and as they both nodded at the same time, Sakura knew that they were up to no good. The female let out a startled yell when each boy grabbed her by one of her arms and started to pull her off of the bed. Kyoun lifted his head up to see his master being pulled across the floor by the two males. "What do you two think you're doing?!" she yelled, glancing between the two males. Looking back at the bed with a frown, she met curious, blue eyes. "_Kyoun_, don't just sit there and watch, do something."

The kit tilted his head to the side and gave her a quizzical look as if saying 'What do you expect _me_ to do?' The kunoichi groaned as the two genin continued to drag her across the floor and out of the room and eventually into the kitchen. Multiple sets of eyes flocked to the scene as she grumbled under her breath about 'damn boys'.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Alright, come at me."

Naruto made the hand sign and summoned four shadow clones. Sakura stood still as she watched all five Narutos charge at her. The kunoichi jumped and landed on the ground with her hands as she spun around, her feet knocking into each blonde. Shadow clone after shadow clone disappeared into a puff of smoke as she looked down at the blonde now under her.

"You're still putting too much chakra into your jutsus, Naruto." The kunoichi contemplated on what to do as the blonde stared at her with a frown. She looked over to see Sasuke sitting on a high tree branch, watching them. Then suddenly, her face lit up with a new idea. Stepping away from Naruto, she pointed to a nearby tree. "Naruto, I want you to use your chakra to walk up the tree and do crunches upside down from the highest branch."

"What?" he shouted, "You've got to be kidding!"

Sakura smirked as he stood up, frowning deeply at her. "Not at all. This will help you with your chakra control. One slip up and you'll fall."

"That's too much, don't you think Sakura?"

The pinkette sighed and turned around, throwing her arms behind her and cradling the back of her neck with her hands. "I bet _Sasuke_ could do it."

"How ma-?!"

"One hundred for today is fine."

She turned back around with a grin as she watched Naruto run off to a nearby tree and start on his task. She jumped off of the ground and landed on the same branch the Uchiha sat on, smiling warmly as Naruto almost lost balance after just four crunches.

"A hundred, Sakura?"

The kunoichi shrugged her shoulders, her eyes never leaving the blonde. "I have confidence he'll get it done by tonight. What about you? Why aren't you working on your chakra?"

"I don't have any issues with my chakra control." he scoffed. Sakura tilted her head to the side. What he said wasn't nessecarily true. He was very good with it but there was still room for improvement. Not that he would actually admit that he was lacking a bit in control.

She turned her head to look down at him. "Want to work on taijutsu then?"

He stared at her for a moment before nodding and standing up.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Naruto had collasped onto the ground after his hundrenth crunch. The other two had stopped in mid battle when his body had created a small earthquake to erupt through the training field. They both ran over to see the damage and both were quite amused to find him unconscious. The pinkette had carried him home on her back that night whilst Sasuke went to his own home. Team Kakashi had completed mediocre missions since then and Sakura had continued to train Naruto with his chakra, or 'torturing' him by his standards. She watched the blonde's progress as well as Sasuke's as she battled him. The closer the chuunin exams came, the more anxious the kunoichi got.

They were so close. . . So close to the attack on Konoha. . . So close to Sasuke's betrayal. Everytime she thought about that specific part, her body would just freeze on the spot. Most of the time, Naruto would be behind her and would end up walking into her. Everytime that she had frozen when she was with her team, the other two would ask her if she was alright or what was wrong, but everytime she had looked up at Kakashi and he would give her a knowing look. He was stressed out about the knowledge of the future attack as well. Especially knowing that he couldn't do anything to stop it.

~_~SCENE CHANGE~~_

"What's going on here?" Sakura asked as she walked up to stand next to Naruto. She looked ahead and could see two of the siblings. Konkuro and Temari. She couldn't sense Gaara's chakra or Sasuke's in the area yet. Though the Uchiha's was close by.

"These guys are bullying Konohamaru!" yelled Naruto, pointing at the Sand ninja with the purple make-up.

The pinkette sighed and scratched the back of her head. Lowering her arm to her side, she stepped forward. She could feel the eyes of everyone following her movements, but she didn't stop walking even as Naruto called out to her, "No, Sakura! Those are bad guys."

"You better listen to your pal, girlie." sneered Konkuro as she stopped two feet in front of him.

Sakura placed her hand on her hip and tilted her head to the side. She knew Konkuro's abilities and she knew how much stronger he would become so she wasn't afraid. If she wanted to, she could kill him on the spot just by pressing a few pressure points on his spine.

"I believe the brat you have there belongs to my friend."

"And what are you going to do about it?" he smirked.

She smiled up at him and raised her arms above her head, stretching, and could feel Sasuke's chakra signature up in a nearby tree. "Well I _could_ just kill you but that wouldn't leave much entertainment for the chuunin exams."

The puppet specialist narrowed his eyes at her with a deep frown. "_You_ kill _me_? I'd like to see that happen."

Sakura looked up at him with an amused smile on her face, but then her face fell and her eyes widened as her petite body shook in tremors. The chakra she just felt. . . Was that really the same person she had come to know and love as a friend? The same person Konoha had come to know as their greatest ally?

"Hey Sakura! What's wrong? Did that big jerk hurt you?!" yelled Naruto from behind the group.

"Shut your mouth twerp!" Konkuro shouted and then turned his attention back to the shock stricken pinkette.

Sakura narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists but she couldn't stop her body from shaking. She whipped her head to the tree that Sasuke was at as she whispered hauntingly, "_Such bloodlust_."

Everyone turned their attention to the tree and let out a startled gasp. Sasuke turned his head and his eyes widened when he saw a red haired male hanging from a tree branch on the other side of the tree.

"Konkuro, we do not have time to be fooling around."

"Y-yes Gaara." Konkuro replied, dropping the kid that was in his hand. Konohamaru immidiantly ran over and stood behind Naruto.

Sakura gritted her teeth as she stared at Gaara and was thankful that she couldn't sense the evil rolling off of him the last time she meant him in this spot. She definitely would've broken down with fear. A shudder shot through her spine when he looked over at her. The kunoichi took a step back when she noticed sand starting to form a pool at her feet. Within a few seconds, Gaara was standing a few feet in front and an overwhelming stench filled the air as the sand fluttered on the concrete ground. It was so nauseating up so close, she had to supress the urge to vomit. Which was saying something with her past title of being a medic. She had never smelt such a disgusting aroma coming from Gaara before, and the fact that she knew what the smell was wasn't helping her.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and clenched his jaw as he cautiously watched the red haired male appear before Sakura. His orbs raked over him for any possible threat that he might pose, the urge to keep the pinkette safe called out to him strongly and loudly.

"Are you afraid of me, kunoichi?" His voice was smooth and calm but after knowing him for so long, Sakura could hear the hint of disgust and hatred laced in there.

She refrained from narrowing her eyes at him but she wouldn't show fear. Her back straightened and she spoke firmly, "No." His eyes never hesitated for an instant, trying to see if she was lying, which she wasn't afraid of him. It was just the smell. . . "Can I tell you something though?"

His eyes remained still. "What is it?"

Sakura couldn't help but make a disgusted face and plug her nose from the wretched scent. "Your sand reaks of blood."

Finally, Gaara's eyes made movement as they blinked at her, showing his slight surprise. She let out a relieved sigh when he began walking away from her. His siblings followed his movements as he continued to walk away but then he suddenly stopped and turned his head toward her.

"What is your name, kunoichi?"

Sakura huffed and crossed her arms in a defiant manner. "Isn't it polite to introduce yourself first?"

She watched as he turned all the way around and stared at her. "My name is Gaara."

The kunoichi nodded her head. "I'm Sakura Haruno. I look forward to seeing you three at the exams."

He nodded his head and turned back around, walking away. Konkuro gave her a huge grin as he waved at her, "Bye bye, girlie. We'll see you later."

Sakura's body erupted with goosebumps as she let a grimace cross her face. "Uh, yeah." Shaking the uneasy feeling off, she turned her head around to face the Uchiha that was still sitting on the tree branch. She gave him a serious expression. "Have you seen Kakashi-sensei?"

He shook his head, his face blank, though on the inside he was greatly relieved that the trio was leaving, mainly the red head.

"Damnit." she cursed, lightly kicking the ground and creating cracks to spread throughout the concrete of the walkway. She frowned at the three foot crack she had just made. "Oops." Turning around, she began to make her way passed Naruto. "I don't know about you guys, but I am _not_ about to stick around to get blamed for that."

"But you're the one who did it!" yelled Naruto and Konohamaru in unison.

Sakura turned her head to give them a blank look, her eyebrows a little bit furrowed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Her blonde best friend sighed whilst Konohamaru gave her an incredulous look, the scene being quite amusing to the Uchiha as he jumped down from the tree. Sakura looked to the side and saw Sasuke walking toward her. "Do you want to go find Kakashi-sensei?"

She thought for a moment and watched as he stopped to stand next to her. He continued to watch her as she shook her head. "No, he's probably in a meeting or something."

"Hey, Sakura!"

"What is it, Naruto?" asked the kunoichi as she turned to see the blonde beaming at her.

"Do you want to go get some Ichiraku Ramen?" he asked, excitement beaming in his blue orbs.

"Sure." she nodded, smiling. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the Uchiha beginning to walk off. Before he could take his third step however, she hooked her arm around his and pulled him back. She frowned as he turned and narrowed his eyes at her. "Oh no, you're coming along."

He opened his mouth to retort but she cut him off, "I know you want to be alone to pout but that's why I'm not gonna let you go."

He closed his mouth and narrowed his eyes at her more. He then parted his lips to speak but, again, she cut him off, "You've trained enough to be fine for today, take a break to eat something."

He closed his mouth and then opened it again, but just like the first and second time, she spoke before him, "Of course I'm not going to let you win this."

Sasuke gritted his teeth at her. 'Damnit, she knew exactly what I was going to say before I could even get a word out.' Figures.

Sakura smiled brightly at his internal musings, tightening her hold on him. "Is that a yes?"

The Uchiha let out an exhausted sigh and nodded, "Fine."

"Yayy!" the blonde and pinkette cheered in unison.

Sakura chuckled as she began pulling him along, going to hold his hand as she ran over to Naruto and grabbed his hand as well. A heavy feeling of content washed over her as she continued to hold their hands along the way to the ramen stand that Naruto loved so much. It was rare for all three of them to get along like that and she reveled in every second of it. It was such a wonderful feeling, so warm and calming, comforting. It tore her when she thought it might have to end soon. . . Looking to the male on her right, a small frown formed on her face. Would he not leave afterall? Would he stay with them instead of craving to gain power? What about Orochimaru? Would she be able to keep him at bay so he couldn't place that mark on Sasuke? She hoped so. . . If it still happened then she could always tell Kakashi as soon as possible so he could put the seal on it. But that wouldn't be enough. The kunoichi would have to put her own seal on him to keep his chakra down if it ever got too out of control.

"What is it?"

Sakura blinked out of her thoughts, just then realizing she had been staring at the dark haired male and had gotten caught. He was looking at her quizzically, his eyebrows furrowed and a frown on his lips. She turned her head and frowned at the ground.

"Nothing."

Please review what you think. :)


	6. Letting Loose

Thanks for the reviews you guys :) I greatly appreciate them and they never fail to make me smile. I hope you all enjoy the chapter :)

Chapter 6: Letting Loose

"I-is that y-you, N-Naruto?"

The three looked behind them to see a blushing Hinata, tapping her index fingers together nervously. Sakura's face lit up with a mischievous smile as Naruto's eyes widened. Almost instantly, Sasuke's eyes caught the shift in the pinkette's expression and knew that she was planning something.

"Hinata?" Naruto questioned, his features showing his curiosity and confusion that she was there.

She nodded and Sakura gently elbowed Naruto in his side. "Ask her to sit with us, Naruto." she whispered.

He nodded and gestured for her to take the empty seat beside him, the last one to his left. "Come eat some ramen with us, Hinata."

The blushing girl's eyes widened for a moment until she shyly nodded, smiling softly. She took a hesitant seat beside the blonde as he turned to look at her with a huge grin. Sakura watched silently as he tried to make small conversation with the shy girl. Already having finished her food, the pinkette did her best to crawl out of her stool. Biting her lip while grinning, she carefully backed away from the couple. Then once she was out of the stand, she began to walk away quickly, smirking proudly.

"I can't believe you would leave me there with those two."

Sakura chuckled at the male walking behind her. "I knew you would eventually leave without me even if I stayed."

"I would've waited for you." Sasuke frowned as he watched Sakura's hair blow through the wind as she walked in front of him, tempting him to rake his fingers through it.

"Yeah, right." she snorted. "You would've let them to their gushiness the first chance you got and you know it."

"True." he replied calmly, still looking at her pink locks and noting how long it had gotten since the time that they were made genin.

Sakura smiled and stretched her arms above her head, looking up at the setting sky while she did so. "So tell me, Sasuke. Why are you following me?"

"I'm not." he scoffed. Suddenly, the air around him shifted and he saw that Sakura was no longer in front of him. His onyx eyes looked around franctically and right when he felt her chakra behind him, she wrapped her arms around his neck, resting them on his chest.

"Why do you insist on lying to me, Sasuke?" she whispered into his ear, making his body tense and his nerves stand on edge. "If you want to be in my company, you should just say so."

The Uchiha gritted his teeth and glared at the ground, his body heated with her touch and her breath in his ear. "Fine." And all too soon for his liking, Sakura pulled away and smiled at him as she grabbed his hand. "Where are you taking me?" he asked as she pulled him along with her, going to an unknown destination.

"To your apartment." she replied, gently dragging him along.

"What for?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and speeding up to match her pace to stand beside her.

"You'll see." she laughed, the sound making his heart flutter.

_~~SCENE CHANGE~~_

"What the hell did you say?!"

Sakura frowned at the Uchiha that was seated on his couch, staring at her like she was crazy. She tilted her head to the side. "You're cranky, Sasuke. I just want to help."

"I don't need to take my shirt off for you to do that though." he responded, narrowing his eyes at her. If she had aroused him so easily last time, he dreaded the idea of how he would react if he were in front of her half naked.

The kunoichi continued to frown at him as she placed her hand on her hip, standing in front of him.

"No, but it'll help me a great deal with applying chakra to your muscles." She continued, letting a smirk form on her lips. "Are you too scared for me to see your chest,_ Sasuke_?"

His eyebrow twitched in annoyance and he groaned as he began to take of his shirt. Sakura watched closely while he did so. His torso wasn't really bad to look at but considering his age, there really wasn't much there. She could vaguely outline the small curves there that were the beginnigs of abs. The skin was smooth and softer looking than the body he had in the future. As to be expected. She honestly wasn't disappointed in his form but it really didn't do anything for her, considering her mental age and his physical one.

Sakura frowned when she noticed the smug look on the Uchiha's face. "Like what you see, Sakura?"

Honestly, she should've expected him to say something like that. Sighing, she smirked down at the boy and decided to humor him a bit. "Maybe, but I'd never tell you if I did. Now," she said, pointing to the spot next to him on the couch, "lay down."

Sasuke chuckled at her and did as he was told, laying fully down on the couch, his back exposed to the pinkette as he crossed his arms under his neck and closed his eyes. Letting out an exasperated sigh, she decided to toy with the boy while working on him. At first, she really was only concerned about his stress level. She had wanted to work the crinks out in his muscles and loosen him up a bit. But after seeing the satisfied smirk on his face when he caught her staring at him, she wanted pay back. Though she could get revenge on him at a later time.

Sakura placed her leg over him and sat down on his back side. It was a weird sensation, to feel their asses touching but she ignored it and before he could comment on her position, she placed her glowing hands on his shoulder blades. The pinkette sighed as she started to knead at the tense muscles in his shoulders while healing them.

"Can I ask you something, Sasuke?"

"Hm?" he hummed, too distracted by the hands digging deliciously into his muscels to form any other response.

Sakura paused for a second, doubt spreading through her. "What's the most important thing to you?"

"What do you mean?" he questioned, curiosity and concern taking over him. He could tell that she was hesitant by the way she had stopped her movements for a split moment.

The kunoichi bit her lip before she answered him. "I mean, out of everything in this world, what is the most important thing to you?"

Silence filled the room for awhile, both contemplating on his answer. He knew what his answer would be if he allowed himself to be honest. What he truly cared about most in his twisted life. Though he couldn't have her finding out about that just yet. "That's not your concern." he finally spoke.

A heavy feeling settled in the pit of her stomach and her face fell as her hands hesitated again. "Oh." she mumbled.

"But either way," he continued, "I'm not sure what to tell you."

Her hands froze as her chakra left her hands. Her jade orbs were wide from surprise. "W-what do you mean?" In her past, he wouldn't have hesitated and answered right away that he didn't care for anything else other than to avenge his clan.

"Don't stop, Sakura." His comment brought a blush to her cheeks but she went back to healing and kneading his flesh anyway. "Before you and Naruto came along," he paused, trying to find the right words for what he wanted to say. "I didn't really care for anything other than revenge. I hated Itachi for what he did and I started to hate everyone else as well."

"Why everyone else?" she asked softly, moving her hands lower after she felt the muscles in his shoulders relax.

"Because they have what I don't." he responded simply, not at all ashamed or embarressed by his answer. He trusted Sakura with that knowledge. The Uchiha knew that she wouldn't look at him any differently and that she would understand.

Sakura knew exactly what he was talking about; something that was roughly snatched away from him. Family. Protection. Comfort. Love.

"You can have that again, you know?"

"No." he paused, doubt clear in his voice. "I can't."

The pinkette tilted her head to the side as she continued to work out the muscles in his back. "After you kill Itachi, I mean. As long as you aren't tortured by that man, you no longer have to turn your back on the ones you love."

"Sakura." he murmered.

"Its alright, Sasuke. I understand more about you than you know."

"Is that so?" he asked quietly, and he knew that her words were true. She understood him better than anyone else. In fact, at times it seemed that she understood him more than he did himself.

"Yeah, but I want _you_ to understand something, Sasuke."

"Hn."

She stopped her hand movements and her healing chakra as she placed her hands flat on his back. "I realize that no matter what anybody says, you will still seek power for revenge. But Naruto and I will be there with you." she paused, Sasuke listening intently to her. "Just promise me something?"

"What is it?" he asked while turning his head to the side to look at the wall on the other side of the room.

Sakura paused for a few moments, uncertainty pawing at her mind and heart. "Just don't turn your back on us?"

The Uchiha twisted his body around so his back was fully on the couch while he looked up at the kunoichi, a small frown on his lips. He watched as her eyebrows furrowed and her teeth were biting on her lower lip. She looked nervous for his reply and her eyes were shrouded in a cloud of mixed emotions. He noticed that her jade orbs held a sense of maturity and wisdom he had only seen a few times during actual battles.

Sasuke thought for an answer. He really didn't want his teammates, or anybody else for that matter, to interfere with his quest for revenge. He still had to get stronger, a lot stronger. He knew that and he didn't want anyone slowing him down. But it was just something about the kunoichi before him that threw him off. She had never slowed him down. In fact, he often found himself chasing after her, struggling to catch up to her and as much as he hated that fact, she was good to keep around.

At first, Sasuke had grown up despising everybody after the family massacre. Even Naruto. But the only person he had actually held close to him was Sakura. She understood him in so many ways and she was always there to support him and push him forward. He had been shocked at first to see what kind of strength and talents she possessed, but not once had she intentionally mock him for being weaker than her. In fact, she was helping him get stronger.

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows even more as she watched him for an answer. He had been staring silently at her for a few minutes now. He had a glazed over look in his eyes, signaling that he was deep in thought. The kunoichi sighed and focused back on his muscles, putting chakra into her palms as she placed her hands under his collar bone and massaged the flesh there. She could feel his heart beat quicken but didn't say anything on the matter. She closed her jade orbs and focused on her task at hand. Once the muscles around those areas loosened, she moved her hands a little lower, placing her soft palms over his nipples and began massaging around the area. She felt his heart beat speed up even quicker and she bit her lip in concentration. She would have to be especially careful in the sensitive area.

Since her eyes were closed and she was so concentrated on her work, she didn't see or feel the Uchiha's eyes raking down her form. She moved her hand lower and placed them over his stomach, doing the same thing there. Once she was done and his upper body was totally relaxed, she stretched her arms above her head and mewled at the sensation of her muscles flexing.

Her body stilled when she heard a hiss below her. Sakura looked down to see an almost painful expression on the young male's face. "Sasuke?" she asked, concern filling her. He shouldn't have been hurting. "Sasuke, what's wrong?" she asked, leaning over to place a hand on his forehead, eliciting another hiss from his lips.

"Stop, Sakura. Don't move." he croaked out, his voice husky.

Sakura leaned back, retrieving her hand, and grimaced when the boy let out a small groan. She noticed that he was glaring down at something between them. The kunoichi's eyes lowered down and she just then noticed what she was sitting on. '_Ugh_, I'm such an idiot.' she inwardly growled at herself. 'Why didn't I notice this before?'

The female could feel his body slightly trembling under her and she didn't know what to do. "Sasuke." she whispered.

"Sakura." he growled. The kunoichi made a move to remove herself from his person but she was abrutly stopped by a firm grip on her wrist. "Don't move."

She looked back down at him, her face falling at his pained expression but she made no move. He looked up into her eyes. "Can you get rid of it?"

Her eyes widened at his question and her face began to flush when she realized that he was being serious. She was sure that he had no idea what that question implied. "I-uh-w-well. . ." The pinkette adverted her eyes to a far away spot on his carpeted floor.

"Can you get rid of it or not, Sakura?" he asked, his tone sounding a bit snappy.

She turned her attention back to his onyx gaze, most of her face flushed from embarrassment. "Do you have _any_ idea about what you're asking me to do?"

He raised an eyebrow at her in bewilderment. 'Clearly he doesn't.' she inwardly groaned. Her eyes widened when he snaked his hands down her sides and then held her hips firmly. The kunoichi couldn't hold in a gasp when he gently thrusted his hips upward, throwing his head back with a low moan. Sakura narrowed her eyes at him and frowned. 'So he _does_ know. The little punk!'

Sakura bit her lip to keep in a moan as he thrusted upward again. "Sasuke, what do you think you're doing?"

He opened his eyes and smirked at her. "Getting rid of it."

The kunoichi groaned in frustration. "If I'da known you would react like this, I wouldn't have helped you."

Sasuke stilled his movements instantly and his face turned stoic, though his inner thoughts and feelings proved otherwise. "You want me to stop?"

The question shocked her to say the least but her response shocked her even more. She turned her head to side, feeling her blush spread to her neck. "I don't mind." She closed her eyes and mentally slapped herself. She felt like the biggest pervert in the world. And though her body was protesting, she didn't want to be affected by the boy under her. By the boy that apparently wasn't as innocent as she thought. But then again, she had never seen Sasuke in any sort of sexual situation before, ever, so she really shouldn't be surprised about how much he knew or not. He could've had knowledge about the subject that she wasn't aware of.

Her eyes widened again when he raked his fingers across her neck, his barely there carresses giving her body goose bumps. She looked into his onyx eyes, seeing an emotion there that she had never seen. Wait, she _had_ seen it before. When they were in the forest and he had come looking for her. She had seen that very same emotion buried under many more in his eyes at that time. Now looking at it, so clearly, it was a bit overwhelming. And it pissed her off because she didn't know what it was.

"Sakura." she heard him whisper before he pulled her down to lay on top of him. She blinked in surprise as she felt his arms wrap around her back and entwine with her long, pink locks. "I won't do it anymore since you're uncomfortable." He would stay true to that, even if his body wanted release. He would just wait until he calmed down or until she left, but as the scent of her hair filled his nose, she would most likely have to leave.

Her face fell as she inhaled the scent of his hair. Then she let a weak smile form on her lips as she replied, "You always were the most observant one out of all of us." 'Must run in the family.' she told herself as she thought back to how Itachi had seen through her all those years ago.

"Hn." he nodded.

"But you don't have to hold yourself back, Sasuke." she whispered into his ear, bringing up a hand and raking it through his dark locks. The female honestly didn't mind him releasing the sexual frustration that raked through his body, even though it made her feel a bit dirty.

Sasuke gritted his teeth, fighting to control himself, but the pinkette was making it incredibly hard to do so at that moment. "Tempting but no. You're gonna have to leave though."

Sakura frowned but nodded nonetheless, "Alright."

And before he could even change his mind, she was no longer in his arms, having performed a jutsu and left instantly. He groaned and slammed his palm into his forehead, already missing the warmth that was above him not a moment before. It'll be awhile before he could get some sleep.

_~~SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Glad to see that you three made it."

The team of genin nodded their heads. Everyone looked over at the excited blonde as he threw his fist into the air and shouted. "Yeah! I'm gonna wipe the floor with this exam!"

Sakura watched the blonde for a moment until turning her attention to glare at the floor, her eyebrows furrowing and her fists clenching.

"Sakura?"

The kunoichi didn't look up at her sensei as she replied. "I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei. I'm just a bit. . . anxious."

He nodded at her and placed his hand on her head in a way to comfort her. "I understand, Sakura, but you can't let it get to you."

Sakura's teeth clenched, "I know sensei." she paused, "But it still doesn't make it any easier."

"We can't turn back now, you of all people should know that."

She found amusement in his words considering how she ended up there in the first place. The kunoichi looked up at him with a huge grin on her face. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei."

Sakura could see that he was smiling at her from the crinkle by his eye as he nodded his head at her. He then vanished and the three were left standing in the hallway by themselves.

"Sakura?"

"What was that about?"

Her tense body slackened and she set a confident expression on the door ahead of them. "Nothing but my own insecurities. Come on." she smiled. "Let's go."

The two nodded and pushed the doors open. They soon made it to a hallway where two males that looked their age was blocking the doorway. She fought back a smile when she was approached by Rock Lee and could feel Naruto and Sasuke's glare attached to him. She also had to fight the urge of wanting to run up to Neji and hug him when she spotted the Hyuuga. Though she couldn't stop the frown when Ino came running up to her and calling her by her special nickname. It seemed that even though the two females didn't have the rivalry that Sakura sometimes missed, and the pinkette covered up her forehead by her bangs, Ino still ensured to use that dreadful nickname. Sakura missed the rest of what was going on around her as the blonde stopped in front of her, a smile on her lips.

"Hey Forehead!"

"What is it, Ino-pig?" Sakura replied, narrowing her eyes at the now frowning blonde.

"Name calling isn't very nice, Sakura." she pouted.

"What do you think you just did?!" Sakura shouted.

"Ouch." Ino whined, covering up her ears. "You're so loud."

Sakura gave her an exasperated look and sighed, shrugging. "Anyway, what is it?"

The blonde female instantly smiled brightly at the pinkette. "Aren't you excited about the exams?"

Sakura grinned at the female before her. "Sure am! Now I finally get to kick your ass!"

"Ha!" Ino remarked, grinning. "I don't think so!"

The pinkette blinked in confusion when she felt a pair of arms beginning to pull her back. "Can't you do this later, Sakura? We gotta get these guys to move." whined Naruto.

Sakura looked back at him and frowned. "Naruto, we don't have to do anything but go to the third floor. This is only the second."

"What?" he asked, letting her go, shocked.

The kunoichi sighed and shrugged her shoulders again, then walked over to the oldest Hyuuga. She stopped in front of him and watched as he turned to look at her skeptically. She stared into his eyes, eyes that always intrigued her. The eyes of the Hyuuga clan. "You are Neji Hyuuga, no?"

"I am." he nodded. "I don't believe I know you."

She smiled up at him and held out her hand for him to shake, he gave her another odd look but took her hand nonetheless. "I'm Sakura Haruno."

Sasuke watched the contact they made carefully, his eyes narrowing when the Hyuuga grabbed Sakura's hand. He didn't like the contact that they made, he didn't like the fact that the male touched her. His eyes continued to narrow the longer that they touched.

"Well, you're making friends all over the place, aren't you Forehead?" Sakura frowned at the blonde as she draped herself over the pinkette's shoulder.

"Jealous?" Sakura smirked and let go of the male's hand.

"Of you? Yeah right." Ino scoffed.

"Anyway," she began and turned to look at her two teammates. "let's get going you guys."

They nodded at her and then the three began to walk to the stairs. They made it to the area that Sakura recognized was the room that Rock Lee had challenged Sasuke. Sure enough, the taijutsu specialist came. Everything happened just like the last time and Sakura couldn't help but find herself bored throughout the whole ordeal. Once in the appropriate room, all the heads turned to the small group. Sakura and Sasuke ignored them whilst Naruto felt a little edgy, though he would soon get over it. The pinkette watched as the others walked in as well. Sighing, she stretched her arms above her head, barely missing from hitting Naruto in the face. She turned her head to see him pouting at her. She let out a laugh but then her body froze when she heard a familiar voice.

Sakura's arms fell to her side and her fists clenched in anger. How could she have forgotten that he'd be here?! The pinkette's hair stood on end as he introduced himself and she couldn't help but grit her teeth at him. The bastard had almost killed Tsunade. Had almost killed _Naruto_. He had prentended to be friends with them and then betrayed them. He was working for that bastard Orochimaru. The lists just kept piling up and Sakura couldn't contain a low, menacing growl as she continued to glare at him. She didn't realize that her chakra began to flare up with disgust and anger around her until Naruto placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. He instantly snatched his hand away as if he were burnt, and that wasn't far from the truth.

"Damn, Sakura." he grumbled, holding his hand to his chest.

The kunoichi blinked a few times and whipped her head toward the blonde with an apologetic look on her face. "Oh! I'm so sorry, Naruto." She gently grabbed his wrist and looked at the palm, not missing his hiss of pain. There were a few tiny burn marks but they quickly began to heal. She dropped his wrist and looked back at him, frowning. "Sorry." she mumbled.

"Its alright, but I think you just became enemies with everyone in this room."

Sakura tilted her head and gave him a look of bewilderment but then turned her attention to the class full of genin. They were all staring at her, some glaring, some with some kind of lust in their eyes, either it be blood lust or just plain lust. Their intense gazes made her want to shudder.

"You sure are a strange one." Kabuto spoke, standing up from his position on the floor, his special ability gloating finished long ago. Sakura turned to look at him and gritted her teeth. "Any _normal_ ninja in your shoes at the moment would be scared for their life, yet you look at them with indifference."

"Are you implying that I'm not _normal_?" she glared, her temper rising again with his statement.

"Calm down, Sakura!" Ino yelled at the pinkette. Almost instantly, the furious kunoichi began to relax.

"We didn't come here to make enemies." explained Shikamaru from a few feet away.

Sakura sighed and turned around, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're right. Sorry." The pinkette gritted her teeth as she glared at the ground. 'Damnit!' she yelled at herself. 'I can't believe I got that careless! And worst of all, I hurt Naruto.' A frown adorned her features as she looked over at the blonde.

"Dude, what the hell did you say?" a voice asked that she recognized belonged to Kiba.

"I'm not sure." Kabuto replied, looking at the pinkette's back.

Sakura continued her thoughts as she looked back down at the ground. 'I've got to kill him off before he can report to Orochimaru. But how can I do that without Sasuke and Naruto finding out? It'll have to be after he helps us, after we lose our scroll to Orochimaru. . .' The kunoichi's fists clenched again but she relaxed them almost instantly. She could feel a strong chakra signature approaching and knew that it was almost time to start the test. Sighing, she uncrossed her arms and looked to the front of the room and mentally prepared herself.

_~~SCENE CHANGE~~_

The tests were handed out and she looked over hers. Looking at it now, with the same exact questions as before, the quiz was child's play. Last time, it was stated that these questions were based on a jounin's level, then that would mean her knowledge was that of the Hokage. She finished the nine questions with ease, answering each one accuratly within a few minutes. Sighing and looking over her results for the fourth time, she realized that she was starting to get extremely bored. She tapped the tip of her pencil on the desk, trying to entertain herself. But the sound grew quick to irritate her. The kunoichi placed her head in her palm and closed her eyes as she listened to the names being called out, signaling that they were dismissed from the test and that they failed for being caught cheating.

Sakura opened her eyes and looked down at her paper. She supressed the urge to groan loudly out of boredom. Suddenly, she felt a pair of eyes on her. Looking up, she saw a scarred face looking at her. He gave her a stern look as they stared at each other. The female raised a quizzical eyebrow at him before closing her eyes again.

Sakura was left extremely bored as the time passed. Finally, it was time for the tenth question and she kept her eyes on Naruto while people got up and left, thinking that they couldn't handle it. She watched and wasn't worried as Naruto began to raise his hand. The pinkette smiled when he slammed it back against the desk and shouted that he wasn't going to be scared off that easily. That was the remarkable thing about Naruto; even though she had changed his past so much by letting him live with her, his determined and inspirational personality never changed no matter what.

This time around, she wasn't surprised when their next procter came rushing through the window. As they were dismissed, Sakura turned back around when she felt the same pair of eyes on her as earlier. After they stared at each other for a moment, the pinkette turned around and headed out, quickly catching up to her two teammates.

_~~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura was on edge the whole day as she stood on the outer gates of the Forest of Death, mainly because she knew Orochimaru was in the area. She blocked everything else out as she signed the form that everyone was handed. The kunoichi didn't even bother to read through it, she already knew what it said. Setting it aside, she threw her head against the tree trunk behind her as she looked up at the leaves. She could see the sunlight that managed to escape through the cracks.

Closing her eyes, she focused on more important things than the exams. LIke her growing migraine raging against her temples. How much of the past could she change? She was only one person, with so much power. But then again, Tsunade's orders revolved around her gathering information from Itachi about the massacre and to keep Sasuke from leading to a betrayal. Her going back in time, going through everything again, all in order to stop a catastrophic war between Leaf and Sound. It didn't seem like enough for Sakura though. She wanted to do so much more for Tsunade and Naruto but she would settle for what she could at the moment.

She could always do her best to not let Orochimaru get to Sasuke. But she knew better than that. The Uchiha wouldn't back down from a fight unless he thought he absolutely needed to. She wouldn't no matter what though, and Naruto was the same way as her. She had developed that attitude from him, after all. But if Sasuke did manage to get bitten, then she would go with what she had planned if that happened. Then on another note; Kabuto. Sakura's fists clenched as she thought of him. Then, suddenly, she felt a strong tingle of chakra appear above her and a petrude smell hit her nose. She cringed at the scent.

"You do a well enough job concealing chakra, Gaara. Your bloodlust tends to give you away though."

She couldn't fight back the smile as he calmly spoke, "I'm surprised you could even sense I was here."

Sakura frowned and tilted her head to the right to see him standing in one of the tree branches. "You wish to speak with me?"

His gaze turned downward and met her orbs. He didn't say anything but that said enough for the pinkette. Standing up, she wiped the dirt off of her black shorts and bent over to grab her forms. She began to walk off and could feel his eyes following her movements. She waved back to him, "Maybe we'll see each other in the forest. Bye now."

Sakura lowered her hand and continued walking to turn in her forms. Afterward, she quickly found Naruto sitting on the ground still reading over the his. She stopped right behind him and looked over his shoulder. "Hey there, Naruto."

The kunoichi pulled back as his body shot up in surprise, barely missing her. "Oh Sakura! You scared me!" he yelled, pressing his hand to the spot over his heart to emphasize his point.

"You shouldn't let your gaurd down, dobe." Sasuke commented as he made his way to stand beside them. Sakura chuckled when Naruto barred his teeth at the Uchiha, growling at him.

"Hey Forehead!"

The pinkette's grin immidiantly fell into a frown, not at all surprised when a certain blonde threw her arms over her shoulders, pressing her chest into the pinkette's back as she leaned over to speak. "Have you found yourself a boyfriend yet? Don't you think its about time?"

This especially caught the two male's attention as they looked up at the blonde female and their teammate. Sasuke, especially, was interested in what the pinkette had to say to the question. _Did_ she have a boyfriend yet? For some reason, anger started to fill him at the thought of her being with anybody else other than him, though he didn't let his anger show.

Sakura tilted her head to the side to get a better look at the female grinning at her. "Uh no, Ino. I don't have time for dating. I barely have enough patience to deal with these two." she replied, pointing her finger to the two males in front of her, ignoring Naruto's pout and Sasuke's frown. "Much less a third guy."

"Hmm." Ino hummed, putting her finger to her chin in thought. Suddenly, the pinkette got the feeling that the next thing out of her mouth wasn't going to be too bright. "I don't know, Sakura. That Neji guy is kinda cute." Sakura slumped her shoulders in defeat and let out an exhausted sigh. At least she didn't say someone like Gaara. "And you seemed to get along with him earlier too." Ino continued, poking her index finger into Sakura's cheek, starting to get on the pinkette's nerves. "Maybe you should give him a try."

"No way." Sakura replied, much to the dark haired male's silent relief, and shrugged the blonde off. Turning to face her, Sakura pointed a finger at the blonde's nose. "The first second I consider Neji as a date candidate is when you go on a date with Rock Lee."

"Ugh, _no_." Ino grimaced.

"Why not?" the pinkette smirked.

"Because," Ino began, knocking Sakura's hand out of her face. "the dude's totally obsessed with _you_."

Sakura laughed at her blonde friend and replied, changing the subject off of Lee, "Besides, there's already someone that likes Neji and I, for one, don't want to get on her bad side."

Ino's ears instantly perked up in curiousity. "What? Who?"

"Oh, you'll see eventually." the pinkette smirked. "I noticed it when I introduced myself to him." Sakura thought back and couldn't escape the shiver that went through her at the sour look Tenten had given her when Neji grabbed her hand.

"Yeah, right." Ino said, throwing herself back over her shoulder. "I think _you_ like him."

"I don't." Sakura pouted.

"Ohh! I know who Sakura likes!"

The other three genin turned their heads to look at a grinning Naruto. "Who?" the two females asked at the same time, though the curiosity was there in all of them.

"Not telling." he replied, chuckling as his grin grew wider.

"Naruto." the two females mumbled with a frown.

"Still not telling." he laughed.

Sasuke let out an annoyed sigh. Honestly, his two teammates could get on his nerves at times but he had to admit it, they kept him entertained. Though he was curious as to who Sakura liked and how Naruto had come to find out. The blonde seemed to be oblivious to noticing those sorts of things. Then again, it was Sakura. The Uchiha shouldn't be surprised that Naruto would pay her enough attention to find out who she had feelings for. Sasuke could also recall that Naruto had actually been able to find out that he, himself, had feelings for their teammate.

The pinkette looked over her blonde teammate carefully. Who the hell was it that he thought she liked? Tilting her head to the side in thought, she tried focusing on it harder. Finally shrugging in defeat, she let out a sigh and vaguely listened to the two blonde's getting into the beginnings of an argument. Raising an eyebrow at them, she wasn't surprised when they got in each other's faces, irritated sparks flying between them.

Letting out another sigh, she felt a pair of eyes on her and looked to see Sasuke watching her. There was something behind his onyx gaze but she couldn't quite decipher what it was. It was almost as if he weren't really looking at her, more like looking through her, in deep thought. His eyes were glazed over, signaling that he was, indeed, in deep thought. Though she wondered what it was that he was thinking about.

Sasuke registered the fact that Sakura had turned to look at him, but she didn't say anything to him. The male was aware of his attraction for her, but he wasn't sure how deep that attraction ran. He shouldn't be bothered by the fact that she might like someone. He shouldn't be bothered by the idea of her spending time with someone else. Even if he shouldn't have been, he was. Sasuke was deeply bothered by the idea of someone else being around her, spending time with her, making her laugh and caring for her. He also didn't like the idea that if that happened, she might stop doing her weekly visits to his house to make sure that he was alright.

"Sasuke?"

Sakura watched as his eyes cleared after she called out his name. The longer she had stared at him, the more that unknown emotion would cloud his eyes and she didn't like it. She didn't like it at all. Seeing that she had his full attention as he blinked at her, she continued in a soft voice, "Are you alright?"

The Uchiha let out a small sigh before nodding, "Yeah."

The pinkette nodded her head in return, though not believing his words for a second. The emotion that had clouded his senses unnerved her greatly and she wouldn't let it slide without crucial observations later if it were to appear again.

"Hey Naruto!" yelled a loud, childish voice that snapped her out of her thoughts. Everyone turned to look at a group of childeren running towards them, Konohamaru leading them.

Sakura sighed and looked up into the sky, drawing out the noises around her, fully knowing that the kids were there for an interview. The kunoichi began to walk off, not paying attention to the fact that she began walking away the same time the dark haired male next to her decided to as well.

The two frowned and turned around to see Naruto clutching their wrists with a hopeful pout on his features. Without missing a beat, the two genin stated in unison, "I don't have time for this."

The blonde's face fell with slight shock that they were able to say the same thing at the exact same time and his hands fell, giving the two their wrists and freedom back.

Please review? :)


	7. The Second Exam

I absolutely love the reviews I got for the last chapter and I hope I can get more like that. I'm glad you all love my story so far :) And I do plan on there being more tension between Sakura and Sasuke. I also plan on bringing Neji into the mix to spice things up a bit in the later chapters. I know I didn't say anything about this before, but since Kyoun is practically still a baby, he won't be around that much during the exams to help Sakura, unlike with Kiba and Akamaru. I hope you enjoy the chapter :)

Chapter 7: The Second Exam

Sakura stopped her trail, skidding to a stop, her body frozen. Tremors raked up her spine as the air filled with a familiar scent. _Blood_. And lots of it. She whipped her head to left, her eyes wide from recognition. Goose bumbs crawled all over her skin. They couldn't take him. She'd be lucky if she'd make it out alive without undoing her seal, much less Naruto and Sasuke.

"Saku-"

The kunoichi firmly placed her hand over Naruto's mouth as she narrowed her eyes in the direction the horrid sand was. He had just killed, she was sure of it, and she wasn't about to stick around to find out who the poor soul was. She removed her hand from Naruto's mouth and signaled for him to be quiet. He nodded and she gestured for them to follow her. They did without complaint.

Days flew by since then and not that much had changed besides the fact that Sakura was much more alert than the last time. Much to her dismay, she was unable to prevent Orochimaru from sneaking up on them. And while Sakura was busy with the snake and keeping it from taking off Naruto's head while he was unconscious, Orochimaru had gotten to Sasuke and bitten him. She wanted so dearly to kill the snake bastard, but she couldn't yet. She had to wait.

Sakura set the two boys down under the trunk of a large tree. It blocked out the sunlight and any rain if the sky decided to cry anytime soon. Jade orbs watched as the dark mark on the Uchiha's neck started to let out a disgusting, evil stream of chakra. The kunoichi had to keep from letting out a loud scream, whether out of fear or frustration, she didn't know. She had to get started on the seal before it got worse, before he got a taste of that horrid power.

Groaning, she lifted the Uchiha's shirt up to expose his entire stomach. Lifting her hands up, she bit each of the pads on her fingers. Once they were bleeding, she did the appropriate hand signs and gathered up most of her chakra. Transfering all of it into one hand, she slammed her right hand into his stomach. The five spots where her fingertips touched left five, dark swirling circles. Her seal wouldn't do much to keep his mark at bay, but it would keep his chakra under control. In other words, she couldn't keep the mark down, but she could control the amount of chakra he could use with only a simple hand sign. He wouldn't like the fact that she had some sort of leash on him, but it was for his own good for the time being.

Sakura began to pull his shirt down and watched as the seal she gave him slowly started to disappear. It would only show up when she activated or deactivated it, or if he was having trouble controlling his chakra. Sighing, she leaned over and checked on Naruto. He seemed to be doing fine, he was just exhausted. Unfortunately, she couldn't heal fatigue and even if she could, she didn't have much chakra left. And she couldn't undo her seal, lest everyone in the forest come to see where the sudden outburst came from. That wouldn't be good for anyone.

Movement reached her ears and she turned around to see a small squirrell running towards her. The pinkette blinked at the small creature for a moment. If she remembered correctly, she scared it off last time and it came back with Rock Lee. She had stopped it so that it wouldn't activate her trap for the enemy. Which in this case, was the Sound ninja. As the animal grew closer to her, she stood up and readied a kunai. Then she spotted something on it's back. _No way._ That was in a catigory of itself in terms of animal abuse. Throwing her kunai, her aim was perfect when it shot through the air and into the fire parchment that was on the squirrell's back. The paper was ripped off of it's fur and the kunai landed in the dirt a few feet behind the creature. It yelled out in shock and scurried away from the area, going toward where she hoped Rock Lee was. Looking off into the direction where the small animal came from, she watched as the three Sound ninja came out.

The kunoichi narrowed her eyes at them and gritted her teeth. She could fight them off for a little while but she couldn't do much else. That seal she put on Sasuke took way too much of her chakra and the two males would be unconscious for awhile.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sasuke groaned as his eyes started to flutter open. He felt like utter _hell_. His whole entire body ached and his head screamed at him. But the most of the pain was directed to a spot on his neck. Though his body yelled in agony, there was a spot on his stomach that contrasted greatly with the pain. His stomach felt tingly and warm and the difference made him feel uneasy.

"Sakura!"

'What?' he thought to himself, his mind instantly on full alert. Did something happen to Sakura? The dark haired male grunted as he turned his head to the side to see pink hair spread out across the ground yards away. His eyes widened and he could see pain etched over her entire face, her usually bright eyes clenched tightly as she bit her lower lip harshly. He watched as blood seaped out of her mouth and fell down to the dirt. Sasuke didn't pay attention to the Leaf shinobi as the male bent down next to her and cradled her head. Anger flooded through the Uchiha like a roaring fire at seeing the pinkette. He was furious at whoever had hurt her. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see three shinobi jumping and out of the area. His chakra rose threateningly, angry at not being able to do anything.

Sakura's body felt numb from the blow she took moments ago. Right when Lee was about to get the worst hit yet, Sakura had pushed him out of the way and took it herself. After that, Neji, Tenten, Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji had shown up, forcing the Sound shinobi to back off and retreat. She couldn't feel the pair of arms wrapped around her. She couldn't feel anything. Except a growing heat in the pit of her stomach. She gritted her teeth as the feeling got stronger and stronger. It spread throughout her body and stung her like flaming daggers. Then she realized what it was and that a certain male's chakra was flaring like wildfire. The kunoichi opened her eyes and looked over to see the Uchiha standing, his face pointed toward the ground in anger and his fists clenched. Her eyes widened when she saw the dark marks spreading over the side of his neck.

"Sasuke." she grunted. "Stop."

The kunoichi could see his body tense but he didn't calm down. Forcing herself up and out of Lee's arms, she grunted and limped her way over to the male. He continued to stare at the ground, furious, even as she stopped in front of him. The marks were spreading over the whole left side of his body and she knew that it would hurt when she touched him but she didn't care. Sakura almost lost her balance as she threw her arms around him. She could feel his body tense up even more but she tightened the hold she had on him and whispered into his ear, "Its alright now, Sasuke. Everythings fine."

Silence followed after her comforting words but she held onto him and refused to let go until the marks disappeared. It was worse than the last time and that worried her but she wouldn't back down. "I couldn't protect you." she heard him whisper into her ear. It was so quiet, even with her ear being right beside his face. "I didn't wake up in time."

Sakura closed her eyes and brought a hand up to rake it through his dark tresses. "Sorry." she mumbled, "That was because of me. I'm sorry."

_What_? "Why would you do that?" he asked, gritting his teeth as he continued to stare at the ground, his Sharingan disactivating. She could feel his chakra calming down and that was a good sign but she knew he was still angry. But now his anger was directed towards her.

She was expecting him to act like this when he woke up. And it was true, he woke up later than last time because of what she did. The seal she had put on him, it took it's tole out on him as well. His body had to adjust to it, making him more exhausted. His body was just doing what was natural after exertion; resting.

"I was scared." she mumbled. "I was scared of how you'd react when you woke up."

He felt his anger deflate immediately and his gaze softened as he unclenched his fists. The rate and speed that he had calmed down left him feeling weak and tired.

"Sakura." he whispered and she could sense his chakra calming down a great deal. She opened her eyes and could see the marks on his body extracting until finally going back into that dreaded curse mark.

"Are you okay now?" she asked. The female could feel herself losing consciousness, her eyes drooping from exhaustion, but she had to stay awake long enough to know that he was alright. She could do that; keep from passing out long enough to hear his reply.

"Yeah." he nodded. A fuzzy feeling creeped up into his chest as she continued to hold him, asking if he was alright even though she was most likely exhausted and beaten.

"Good." she whispered before she fell into a void of black.

Sasuke wrapped his arms around the pinkette as her body went limp. Looking down into her tired face and the bruises and cuts that marred her skin had his anger flowing again. He turned his attention to the taijutsu specialist, his onyx eyes glaring at him. "What happened?"

"I-uh-"

"Don't yell at him, Sasuke!" shouted Ino, her expression angry and annoyed. Sasuke turned his attention to the blonde and narrowed his eyes at her. "He couldn't help that Sakura decided to push him out of the way and take that hit instead!"

"And where were all of you when this happened?" he shouted, glaring at each person in turn.

"In case you missed it, Uchiha, there were three of them and Neji and Tenten just now showed up." spoke Shikamaru, rubbing the back of his neck. "Now calm down, your girlfriend's going to be fine."

Sasuke gritted his teeth at the male but decided to dismiss his comment as he turned around and placed Sakura down next to his blonde teammate. He sat down on the ground and watched as she slept, silently hoping that she would wake up soon and that she could forgive him for not being there to help her.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

The team got both of the scrolls soon after and during that whole time, Sakura had to fight back the urge to punch a hole into Kabuto's chest and pull out his heart. When they got to the tower, Iruka came and informed them of the meaning of the scrolls. Soon, the next part of the exams began and Sasuke was up first. Everyone watched closely to his battle. Sakura carefully watched as he fought back the power of the curse mark. The pinkette noticed that when it started to act up again, she got a burning feeling in her stomach, letting her know that his chakra was acting up. Or more precisely, the chakra from his mark.

The kunoichi turned her head to her left to look at her sensei. "Kakashi-sensei, that mark."

He looked down at her and nodded. "After the battle."

She nodded in return and looked back down to the battle. "Don't be surprised when you see one on his stomach during the sealing though."

Kakashi widened his eyes at her. "Sakura, did you-"

"Yeah." she nodded again, both knowing that the other was referring to a seal. "Not long after he got that mark, I put one on him. I doubt he knows its there though. It'll only show when his chakra starts acting up or if I activate or deactivate it."

"I wonder what his reaction will be when he notices it." the copy ninja sighed and looked back over to watch the Uchiha.

Sakura smiled. "Probably confused at first then pissed when he finds out what it is and that I did it." The pinkette let out a small laugh. "I'm sure he'll confront me about it eventually and demand that I get rid of it."

"Did you put it on him before?"

"No." she mumbled, shaking her head. "I didn't have the knowledge or chakra back then that I do now."

"Hmm." Kakashi hummed, tilting his head as the Uchiha performed the move he copied from Rock Lee on his oponent. "We'll have to discuss this at a later time, Sakura. It looks like the battle is about won."

"Yeah." she nodded.

The matches moved on exactly like Sakura remembered and soon her match with Ino came up. The pinkette made it so that it played out exactly like last time, ending it with a draw, though without as much tension between them. Sakura had no intention of winning the match. Though she faked being knocked out, she knew Kakashi could tell she was still conscious. Unbeknowist to her, it seemed other people could tell so as well. People who could see the great hint of power behind her small, gentle hands.

Sakura opened her eyes and slowly stood up. Jade orbs looked over to the blond beside her and saw that she was still passed out. Smiling at her before turning around, Sakura made her way over to the ledge and watched as the next combatants made their way into the arena. The kunoichi was slightly surprised when she saw Temari look up at her and grin. The pinkette blinked and then trailed her eyes upward to meet dark rimmed eyes. Tremors raked up her body to see Gaara staring at her. To the left of him, she could see that Konkuro was grinning at her like his sister had done. It was unnerving, to say the least, to have all three Sand siblings' attention on her at once.

"Sakura? What's the matter?" Naruto asked from beside her.

She shook her head and adverted her eyes from the youngest sibling. "Nothing." The kunoichi turned around and gave Naruto a bright smile. "I'm fine, Naruto."

He nodded and returned her smile. "Alright. You did good in your fight!"

"Thanks." She turned her head and saw their sensei leaning against the wall near them and walked over to him. Before she could say anything though, he beat her to it.

"He's in the infirmary, resting at the moment. I didn't see the seal on him so he didn't notice."

"Good." she nodded, smiling even brighter up at him.

"You did a noble thing for your friend back there." she heard a voice speak from a few yards away. She looked to see Neji making his way over to her. He stopped in front of her, his frown present and his eyes cold. "Too bad your nobility will get you nowhere."

Sakura turned to fully face him, frowning as well and placing her hands on her hips, ignoring the fact that everyone around them was listening to their conversation. "And that _lovely_ attitude you have will get you so much further."

He narrowed his eyes at her as Naruto snickered behind her. His mocking laughter did nothing for the kunoichi however as she continued her staring contest with the Hyuuga. "You seem like you're a good guy, Neji." she continued, tilting her head to the side. "Though you just seem to have this mocking attitude that I don't really care for at the moment."

He made a throaty noise and turned to watch the match. Sakura did the same but couldn't shake off the feeling that somebody was watching her, someone close. The match flew by with Temari as the winner. The pinkette and blonde next to her cringed when Tenten's body fell onto the blonde's fan, blood spluttering out of her mouth. Naruto turned his head over to look at Sakura. "Hey, Sakura. Why don't you he-"

The pinkette stretched her arms out and her fist connected with the side of Naruto's face before he could finish his sentence. The blonde fell limp against the ground, his body twitching as blood fell from over his lip. She looked over to see that he was unconscious. "Oops. I'm sorry, Naruto. I didn't catch that."

"Was that really nesseccary, Sakura?" Kakashi sighed.

The pink haired kunoichi looked up at her sensei and frowned. "I said I was sorry."

He chuckled at her and turned his attention to the big screen and watched as the name's for the next match came up. Sakura laughed when she heard Shikamaru complaining about fighting a woman but she quickly turned her thoughts onto a more important matter. "Kakashi-sensei, can I talk to you in private for a moment?"

The copy ninja looked down at her and nodded. Then he followed her to a more secluded area that was near the end by the stairs. "What is it, Sakura?"

She turned around to face him with a serious expression. "I want to visit Sasuke. I have a bad feeling that somethings about to happen."

"Alright." he nodded.

Her gaze turned almost angry as she continued, "Keep an eye on Hinata and Lee's match, alright?"

He quirked an eyebrow at her. "What happens?"

She adverted her gaze and looked at the Hyuuga who was eyeing them out of the corner of his eye, knowing that even though he could see them, he couldn't hear their conversation. Sakura then turned her attention back up at her sensei and barely above a whisper, she replied, "Neji." she paused, "And Gaara."

The copy ninja let out a sigh and placed his palm on the back of his head. "Oh boy."

The pinkette nodded and spoke. "After her match, make sure to place Hinata in the room next to Sasuke's. She lives but I'll feel better if I can take a look at her."

He nodded his head and Sakura waved as she began to walk off. Nobody stopped her as she left the room, quietly opening a pair of doors that she didn't remember being there the last time she was at the chuunin exams, and walked down numerous hallways. It didn't take her long to find Sasuke's room and the sight she was met with made her blood boil.

Kabuto looked back at the kunoichi as she tightened the grip she had on his wrist that was outstretched towards the Uchiha. He saw pure hatred and anger in her jade orbs as she glared up at him. "My, my, Sakura. To what do I owe this pleasure?" he spoke, putting on a fake smile.

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him even more and gritted her teeth. "Leave." she demanded.

He turned more to look at her better and frowned. "That's not a nice thing to say. I was just here to check on our weak friend here."

The kunoichi growled. "He is _not_ your friend. Now you will move your arm away from him or I will snap it in half." she barked, tightening the hold she had on his wrist.

Kabuto sighed and stepped back, Sakura letting go of his now bruised wrist as he did so. She watched cautiously as he left the room. Her anger didn't lower though even as she made her way to the doorway, spotting two ANBU officers standing there. The kunoichi's chakra flared as she glared at each of them. They seemed taken aback by her but she didn't let their shock stop her. "Do _not_ let him back in here." she growled, pointing to the hall where he walked out.

They slowly nodded and she turned around and headed back to the sleeping Uchiha. Her anger disappeared as her eyes roamed over his delicate features. His closed eyes fluttered under his eyelids, signaling that he was dreaming. Sakura placed a warm hand on his left cheek and watched as his head slightly tilted into her palm, unconsciously leaning into the warmth that she willingly provided. Her other hand reached up to rake through his dark locks, soothing it down and out of his face. She watched as his body started to shake slightly and his breathing became faster, letting her know that he was having a nightmare. The hand that was on his cheek went up and her index finger landed on his left temple. Applying a small amount to her index, she poured her chakra into his temple. It wouldn't do much, but she could soothe him down for a bit.

Almost instantly, his breathing calmed down and his body relaxed against the bed. Sakura smiled at the young boy, watching his movements and breathing carefully. Some time passed by and the pink haired female could hear people rushing down the halls. She turned her head and looked out of the door and into the hallway. Two people rushed by with a stretcher with a person on it. The flash of blue that she managed to see told her that it was Hinata. Running out of the room, she followed the team into the room next over. They hooked her up to a few machines and started to get to work. Nobody seemed to notice her presence as she stood in the doorway, a look of shock on her face.

"Her hearts collapsing!" one man said.

"She's got five minutes at best!"

_Five minutes?!_ With the nurses going at their pase, Hinata would never make it. Sakura growled and rushed over to the bed. Shocked eyes turned toward her as she suddenly placed glowing hands over the shy kunoichi's heart in a flash.

"Who do you think you are?" one man yelled next to her but she ignored him, gritting her teeth and focusing on the small female.

Hinata coughed up blood and some landed on her face but Sakura didn't dare to remove it as she continued to heal her. The kunoichi closed her eyes and searched through the female's body. Almost all of her internal organs were messed up. She must've really pissed Neji off, upsetting him more than she had when Sakura witnessed the battle. There was no way that Hinata was going to last five minutes in these men's care. She would've been dead in less than two if Sakura hadn't shown up.

"Sakura." she heard her sensei speak from the doorway but she didn't open her eyes or turn to look at him. "How is she doing?"

The kunoichi bit her lip. "It's worse than we all thought, Kakashi-sensei. Almost all of her organs are torn and I don't have enough chakra to keep her from dying at the moment." Opening her eyes, she turned to look at the two male nurses gaping at her. "Can you two keep her heart stable while I do something? You _do_ have healing abilities, don't you?"

They nodded and took over, both applying healing chakra to Hinata's heart and lungs. Sakura took a step back and bit each of her fingers. Then she did the hand signs and slammed her hand into her stomach. Pain scorched through her, her body unaccustomed to the amount of chakra rushing through her as the seal lifted. Quickly gaining back her composure, she placed her hands over Hinata's body, one hand over her heart, then the other over her stomach. "Give me some space while I do this, you two. Too much chakra will only damage her more."

They nodded and stepped back, watching closely and carefully as Sakura continued to heal her best friend's future girlfriend. She wouldn't let Hinata die. She wouldn't let her leave Naruto and seeing the quiet kunoichi on the brink of death, Sakura felt raging anger pour over her towards the older Hyuuga. True, the male was close to her but Naruto was even closer and Sakura would be _damned_ if she let one of the people that were precious to him die.

The kunoichi let out a relieved sigh, seeing that she was making progress and that Hinata's wounds were starting to come back together. After long, silent minutes, Sakura had finished and Hinata's organs were in the safe zone, though she still wasn't content with that knowledge. Removing her shaky hands from the female's body, she sighed and rubbed the back of her hand across her forehead, wiping off the sweat that had collected there. "Can you two watch over her for me, please? I have something to take care of."

Sakura scowled as she turned around and marched out of the room. She could feel Kakashi following her but he made no move to stop her. It was probably a smart move on his part because she hadn't put the seal back into place and she was ready to smash somebody's face in. Her chakra flared dangerously around her as she continued down the halls with her fists clenched. She shoved the huge room's doors opened, not caring that she just interrupted the match between Lee and Gaara. She had put so much force into pushing the doors open that they flew off the hinges and landed on the ground nearby. Every head turned to her as she stormed up the stairs and passed by Naruto and Konkuro. They looked at her with utter shock and Naruto reached a hand out to touch her but quickly pulled it back when her chakra burned him. Again.

Her eyes narrowed on the Hyuuga and ignored the look of shock in his eyes as she stopped in front of him. Every fiber in her being fought back the urge to slap him when he narrowed his eyes at her. Instead of taking her frustration out on him however, she held back as much as she could and punched the wall next to her. Though she held back most of her power, a huge hole appeared in the wall that covered about ten feet. Sakura bared her teeth at the male and screamed, "Do you have _any_ idea how close you came to killing Hinata?!"

Retrieving her hand, she gripped the front of his shirt and glared evily up at the long haired male. She wasn't surprised when he placed his hand around her arm. "Go ahead." she yelled. "Pierce my chakra points. Even without my chakra, I could _still_ kick your ass!"

She seethed as she felt two hands lay on each of her shoulders. The kunoichi looked back to see Gai and Kakashi behind her. She frowned at the two of them and turned back to glare at the Hyuuga staring at her. She gritted her teeth but let go of him nonetheless. He stared at her in bewilderment as she turned back around and held out her hands to the two senseis. Gai gave her a confused look whilst Kakashi sighed, placing his hand, that had burn scorches all over the place, into her palm. She looked at Gai expectantly and raised her eyebrow. He sighed as well and placed his burnt hand into her palm.

Sakura poured healing chakra into her hands and watched as their wounds slowly began to heal. When she was done with them, she sighed and headed back over to the blonde that meant the world to her. He was staring at her in complete shock. Pink eyebrows raised at him and she held out her hand. He tentatively placed his palm in hers and she began to heal it as well.

"You can be really scary sometimes, Sakura." he said as she dropped his hand after she finished healing him.

The pinkette smiled at him and could hear Lee and Gaara's battle resume. "Hinata is completly fine now, Naruto. She just needs some rest."

He smiled weakly at her and nodded. "Thanks."

She nodded her head in return and decided to lean against the wall, her body sliding down it until she sat fully on the floor. Naruto followed suit, sitting down beside her. "So how do you think Neji's pants are doing after that?" the blonde snickered.

Sakura laughed at his comment and out of the corner of her eye, she could see Konkuro sit down as well, though not against the wall like her and Naruto. "I sure would'a pissed myself if that happened to me." he chuckled.

The pinkette frowned and looked at the ground in front of her. "I didn't mean to scare him. I was just so mad." she mumbled. Sakura's body twitched and it started to go numb. "Ugh, damnit." she groaned.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asked, his voice and eyes filled with concern as he looked at her.

"N-nothing." she mumbled, placing her right hand over her stomach. The pressure on it made her hiss and her teeth clench.

"You're lying, Sakura." replied Naruto, moving to sit in front of her.

Sakura turned to look up at him, a frown on her face. "I'm not lying. I just need to take care of this." she replied and looked back down to her stomach. She could feel the two males beside her staring at her as she bit the pads of each finger on her right hand. Doing a number of hand signs, she gathered chakra in her hand then slammed it against her swirling seal. She groaned and suddenly felt extremely weak. After a few moments of heavy breathing though, she got over it. After all, she had only saved one person from dying and not two like the last time she had undone the seal. And she had been in a battle beforehand when she healed Haku and Zabuza so she wasn't that exhausted this time around.

"Are you alright now, Sakura?" Naruto asked when she slumped back against the wall and her eyes closed.

"Yeah." she replied. "I just shouldn't make any sudden movements. Anyway," she smirked, "shouldn't you be cheering for somebody?"

Naruto stood up abrutly, a look of realization on his face. "Oh yeah!" Turning around, he ran over to the ledge and started yelling for Lee to beat up that 'make-up wearing freak'.

Sakura chuckled under her breathe and wasn't surprised when Konkuro spoke to her. "What was that you just did?"

"It is a seal." she replied calmly, not bothering to open her eyes to look at him.

"A seal for what?"

"My chakra."

"Why would you need a seal for your chakra?"

Sakura frowned and turned her head slightly to look at him, furrowing her eyebrows a bit at his grin. "You ask a lot of questions for someone I hardly know."

"Hey, I'm a curious person." he shrugged.

"Clearly." she smirked. "But I'm more interested in you guys."

"In us?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and frowning at her.

"Yeah." she nodded, "You guys are interesting." Sakura laughed as a slight blush coated his make-up covered cheeks.

"I-uh-ha-"

The pinkette's smirk grew as she looked over toward the arena, knowing just what to say to get under the male's skin. "Especially that fella' Gaara." Her jade eye's turned to the side as she watched Konkuro's shoulders slump and his head turn downward.

"Uh-yeah. It looks like he finds you interesting too."

Sakura's eyes widened as she turned her head to fully look at him, her face clearly showing how shocked she was. "A-are you serious?"

"Afraid so." he shrugged.

She continued to stare at him until he gave her an odd look. Her face fell then. "When did _that_ happen?" she asked, trying her best to keep her volume under control.

He lifted a hand and placed it behind his head, scratching at the back of his neck. "I'm guessing when he first met you and you said you weren't afraid of him. Even though he was that close to you, you weren't scared. That doesn't happen very often for Gaara, actually it just _doesn't_ happen." His hand lowered to rest in his lap as he smirked at her. "And then you had the nerve to say to his face that his sand stinks."

Sakura frowned at him as he let out a loud laugh. She then turned her attention back to the battle that she could barely see from her angle. "'Interesting' is one thing, but you don't think that he has feelings for me, do you?"

"Why?" Konkuro asked, raising an eyebrow at her but as she turned to look at him, he gave her a sly grin. "Have someone else in mind?"

She scoffed at him and turned her head back to the arena, dismissing his flirtatious attitude instantly. "I have enough boy problems, thank you."

He chuckled and turned to look at the battle as well. "Clearly. I mean, just look."

Sakura turned to look at him with a quizzical expression. He nodded his head for her to look in the other direction and she did, seeing that Neji was watching her. He was giving her an odd look, a look she had noticed on men before yet had never seen on the Hyuuga. She groaned and closed her eyes, slamming her head back against the wall. "Damnit."

Konkuro chuckled at her. "Looks like you got guys flocking all over you."

"But I don't want that." she whined.

"Well, can you blame them? I mean, look at you."

Sakura tilted her head up and frowned at him. "You're mean." she pouted.

His face fell at her reply. "How?"

"Just because."

He narrowed his eyes at her, playfully frowning. "You're a nice person." he smiled. "I like you."

"Well don't take this the wrong way," said Naruto, turning around and pointing a finger at the puppeteer. He continued, the volume of his voice growing with each word, "But she _doesn't_ like you."

Sakura let out an amused chuckle as they frowned and glared at each other. "I get the strangest feeling that something similar has happened before." she laughed.

"That's right." Konkuro replied, jumping up to his feet while still glaring at the blonde. "This little brat said the same thing to me earlier."

"Who you callin' 'brat', you weirdo?!" yelled Naruto, putting up his fist. Sakura continued to laugh at them as the glaring contest continued. The kunoichi then decided to ignore them and slowly stood, heading over to the railing to watch the rest of the fight. The other two turned their attention back to the match as well, standing on either side of her. She watched silently as the battle ended and Lee was carried off to the infirmary. A haunting feeling overcame her as she watched them leave with his unconscious body. His arm and leg was broken and they would say he could no longer be a shinobi. Everyone would say that. . . But Sakura knew Lee would prove them all wrong. She smiled widly as she stared through the doorway where they left from moments ago.

Then something struck her, something quite upsetting. Sakura placed her hands on the railing and jumped over it, landing gracefully in front of her sensei. She looked up at him, frowning and her eyebrows furrowed. The copy ninja looked down to see her worried expression. "Don't worry, Sakura. Lee's going to fine, I'm sure."

"I know he is, sensei." she said. Pointing toward the door, she continued in a worried tone, "But I'm not gonna have to pay for that, am I?"

"Oh." Kakashi spoke, turning his head to look at the damage she did to the doorway before shrugging. "Probably."

Sakura's body slumped over in defeat as she groaned. "All this is gonna take a whole month's worth of missions to pay off."

The copy ninja tilted his head to look at her. Sakura's eyes narrowed at him when she realized that he was smirking at her. "This isn't funny." she pouted.

"You shouldn't have acted so careless." he chuckled.

Sakura crossed her arms and turned her head in a pout.

He chuckled at her again and placed a hand on her head. She looked up at him from the corner of her eye as he spoke. "Sometimes I wonder about how old your mind really is, considering the way you behave."

Sakura's face fell as she gaped sadly up at him. "_Sensei_."

Kakashi chuckled for a third time and ruffled her hair before turning around. The kunoichi huffed and followed him up the steps to watch the final match. Naruto looked over at her as she took the final step and grew closer to him. "So what did Kakashi-sensei say?"

Sakura's face fell as she stared at the blonde. She bit her lip before speaking, "We don't know how bad his injuries are yet Naruto, but it looked like his leg and arm were broken."

"Can you do anything to help him, Sakura?" Naruto asked, his face covered in worry.

She shook her head and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, ignoring Konkuro's quizzical expression. Giving the blonde a serious look, she spoke firmly. "He's going to be fine, Naruto." Then she gave him a weak smile. "He'll be taken good care of, I promise."

The blonde nodded his head and gave her a weak smile. Then the two turned their attention to the arena where the last two combatants were. "Hey Naruto?"

"What is it, Sakura?" he asked, turning his head to look at her.

The pinkette frowned as she watched the fight begin. "Hinata must've made Neji really mad during the fight. What did she say to him?"

Naruto frowned as well and looked back to the fight with Choji and the Sound ninja. "He was going on and on about not fighting your destiny and telling Hinata that she was depressed about their family clan."

Sakura listened intently as he continued, his voice lowering a bit. "But there was something that I didn't quite get though."

"What was that?" she asked.

"She mentioned you."

The pink haired female whipped her head around to look at the frowning blonde, her eyes wide with surprise. This definitely didn't happen last time. "What?"

Naruto turned to look at her, his face solemn. "She mentioned something about him being too afraid to approach you. What does that even mean, Sakura?"

Her eyes widened even more as she proccessed his words. "Are you serious?" she asked incrediously.

"Told you guys are flocking to you." Konkuro snickered as he draped himself over her left shoulder.

Sakura frowned at him. "I'm glad you seem to be getting a kick outta this, Konkuro. But this isn't good."

"Yeah, weirdo!" shouted Naruto from Sakura's right as he frowned deeply at the puppet specialist. "Sakura doesn't want guys hanging around her except for me, so you better back off!"

Sakura slammed her palm into her face as she let out a huge groan. Leave it to Naruto to say something like that. Even though he was coming to her defence, he still managed to embarrass her.

"I don't think so, squirt. You're not the only one that wants to hang out with her."

The kunoichi shrugged Konkuro off of her shoulder and placed her hands over her temples, rubbing them. "You guys are giving me a headache. You two can continue arguing if you want, but I'm not gonna be around for it." she frowned and began walking off to the other side to where Kakashi stood beside Gai. Letting out a small groan, she closed her eyes and applied healing chakra to her temples. She could sense someone standing in the middle of the walkway and she could tell that it was Neji watching the fight. Without opening her eyes, she manuevered her way around him, continuing on her way and only stopping once in front of the two sensei's.

Sakura opened her eyes and lowered her arms, her headache gone. She looked up at Kakashi and he looked back at her. She didn't say anything to him, just stared at the one eye that was left on display. The female could vaguely see people turn to look at their interaction but they didn't comment. Long, silent moments passed between them until he nodded at her. She nodded in return and turned back around. Before she could take a step forward though, she bumped into Naruto and grunted.

"What was all that about?" he asked curiously.

"I'll go check on them now, then." the copy ninja said, putting a hand on Sakura's shoulder. She tilted her head toward him and nodded.

"Thank you. Tell me his progress when you're done, please?"

"Of course." he replied, then he was gone.

Sakura turned her attention back to the blonde in front of her, frowning at him. "Naruto, must you sneak up on me like that?"

He smiled brightly at her, his face lighting up with good humor. "Say, Sakura. After this is over, do you want to get some Ichiraku Ramen?"

The kunoichi put her finger under her chin in thought until she smirked at him. "Actually," she began, "_Hinata_ should be walking around after a few hours of rest." She watched as his face fell and he looked at her with a blank expression, but she knew he was listening intently to her. "And you know, Naruto, after she rests up, she's gonna need to get some food in her system." Naruto blinked at her as she continued. "So why don't you take her for ramen?" Her smirk was replaced with a bright smile. "I'm sure she'll love that and she should be waking up any minute now so you can ask her about it."

The blonde's expression immidiantly brightened up and he began running off to the infirmary. Sakura smiled and took her time walking. As she passed Neji, his harsh voice stopped her movements. "Why do you fill that insolent boy with such false hope? How can you say that she will awaken so soon with such injuries?"

Sakura turned her head to look at him and gave him a small smile. "Because I was the one that healed those injuries."

The Hyuuga's eyes widened and he gaped at her. "You-what?"

She didn't reply as she turned around and continued walking. Soon enough, Sakura made it to Hinata's room and found her blushing as Naruto gaped at her. The kunoichi laughed at the scene, gaining the attention of the two. Seeing that they were looking at her, she smiled and asked, "So Naruto, have you asked her yet?" She could see that Hinata gave her a confused look and her blush deepened a little.

"Uh, no." the blonde whispered. Turning back to the shy female, he smiled brightly. "Um, Hinata?"

"Y-yes?" she blushed brightly as he stepped closer to her.

"Do you want to have lunch at Ichiraku Ramen with me later?"

If possible, Hinata's face turned even brighter and Sakura could've sworn that the girl's heart beat was so loud that the pinkette could hear it. "Couldn't believe me until you saw it with your own eyes, huh?" she whispered, sensing Neji right behind her.

"H-how?"

Sakura shrugged and decided to step in before Hinata's head decided to explode, that or before she fainted. "Alright, Naruto. Give the girl a little breathing room." she laughed.

Naruto turned around and frowned but then scowled as he saw the older Hyuuga standing in the doorway, gaping at the female on the bed. "Besides, shouldn't you two be somewhere else? Like, perse, listening to what the Hokage has to say about the next round." She watched as the two began to walk off and before they got too far away, she called out, "And try not to kill each other on the way there."

Turning her head, she smiled at Hinata. "So Hinata, what about that ramen?"

The Hyuuga smiled softly as she tapped her index fingers together. "I-I want to, b-but I think I'm too n-nervous to go through w-with it."

Sakura nodded and moved to sit on the bed next to her. The pinkette placed her hands over the shy kunoichi's, pulling her hands apart and placing them on her lap, making said shy kunoichi look up at her. "You're a beautiful girl, Hinata. Even though Naruto can be dense at times, I know he can see that too." Hinata's blush increased with each passing word, eventually spreading to her neck. "All you have to do is open up to him and give it time and I guarantee he'll catch on eventually. I'll be rooting for you."

Hinata let a true, genuine smile cross her lips as she watched the female in front of her. "Thank you, Sakura-chan."

"Just Sakura, please." she smiled.

Hinata nodded and Sakura soon found herself going into the next room over, leaving the Hyuuga to rest. Seeing Kakashi standing beside the bed, the pinkette made her way over to stand next to him, her jade orbs looking over pale features.

"Couldn't stay away, could you?" she heard the copy ninja ask, amusement clear in his voice.

Sakura frowned slightly as she reached up and ran her fingers over the sleeping male's cheeks, gently moving the bangs there out of the way. "Can you blame me?"

"No I suppose not." he sighed.

The female nodded and continued to softly stroke the Uchiha's cheek, a small smile on her lips as she gazed down at him.

Suddenly, Kakashi spoke up next to her, his voice firm and knowing. "You loved him, didn't you?"

Sakura hesitated her movements for a moment, her smile fading and her eyes glazing over in thought. The night that she dreaded, the night that he left. She had said that she loved him, that she was _in_ love with him. And although she had felt betrayed, the pinkette never did stop loving him. They had tried to kill each other for their own reasons, and yet. . . even though Konoha came first in her life, she had cared for him. "Yeah. I did."

~~_SCENE CHANGE_~~

"Will you leave with him tomorrow, Kakashi-sensei?"

"I believe that will be best, yes."

"Alright." Sakura nodded.

The two had arranged a secret meeting to take place at the training field and a hour after sunset. The wind blew through Sakura's hair as the stars were beginning to light up the sky. It was a full moon that night and Sakura got an uneasy feeling that death surrounded the night.

"Can you tell me more about this attack?"

Sakura nodded again and began to speak in a quiet voice. "Those Sand shinobi that were at the exams, they are here to help assist in the attack."

Kakashi nodded, having already guessed that was the case.

"Their main weapon was intented to be Gaara, however, from what I saw last time, he had no interest in the planned invasion. He was only interested in his future fight with Sasuke." she continued, her voice firm. "During the battle, his siblings take him and retreat for the time being. Immidiantly after, Orochimaru drops his disguise and the invasion begins. While the Hokage battles him, you and Gai-sensei have no choice but to keep the students safe."

"And you and Naruto go after Sasuke."

Sakura nodded. "After the battle," she frowned and looked down at the ground, "Itachi and his partner, Kisame, come to the village with plans of capturing Naruto."

Kakashi's eyes widened at that. He had a pretty good idea what for but had to make sure. So he asked.

Sakura's eyebrows furrowed as she replied. "For the Kyuubi." Looking back up to meet his eyes, she continued in a serious tone. "I wish to speak with you more about this in the presence of the future Hokage."

Kakashi nodded, understanding that it was too dangerous to speak about those matters in an open field where anyone could hear them. "How much do you know about them, Sakura?" he asked.

"A great deal, in fact. It will be a great advantage on our part." she smiled and then waved. "Well I got to go, Kakashi-sensei. I have some spying to do."

"On who?" the copy ninja questioned, giving her a confused and curious look.

Sakura beamed up at him, a look of mischievousness in her jade orbs. "On Naruto, of course. I hooked him up on a date with Hinata. They should be at Ichiraku Ramen right now."

He chuckled at her. "Playing matchmaker, I see."

"Of course." she grinned. And with that she waved at him again and disappeared.

Please review what you think :)


	8. Encountering Demons

Thanks for the lovely reviews and I'm sorry that it took so long to update :( And I'll try to put more detail about what goes on during the time skips and scene changes, 01Trycia-chan01. I'll also try to catch my grammatical errors when I can. Thanks for pointing that out. :)

I apologize to BallerinasAreBabyNinjas for the confusion. It was mentioned in a few paragraphs about how Sakura made her fight with Ino turn out exactly like last time though with less tension between them. I purposefully skipped over any detailed fighting scenes to focus more on Sakura's growing relationships with the participants.

The way I see it, StarKiss666, is that during Ino and Sakura's fight, the whole reason why Ino cut her hair was to show Sakura that she wasn't inferior to her. The whole argument was basically about Sasuke (in my opinion) and since they didn't have that kind of rivalry this time around, Ino didn't cut her hair. So yes, it is still down to her butt :) I also plan on Ino confronting Sakura about faking the fight later on in the next chapter.

Kyoun will also be in this chapter and the next, along with more Sasu/Saku action :) Please enjoy :)

Chapter 8: Encountering Demons

Naruto and Hinata's 'date' had went fairly well. Sakura was quite pleased that Naruto hadn't managed to make the shy girl faint, but she had stuttered so much that sometimes it was hard to understand her. It would be a slow progress for the two but a successful one nonetheless, the pinkette would make sure of it. Now that she had finished watching the awkward-for-now couple, Sakura walked down the deserted streets of Konoha. There was a dealthy, horrid stench in the air and it made her stomach churn. Unbelievable, she spent so many years being a medic, she was constantly surrounded by the smell, yet it still got under her skin. She would've thought that she would be used to the scent, but apparantly not. It still stood out to her like a sore thumb and it seemed her nose always seemed to pick up on it.

Stopping in her tracks and looking up, she found the cause. On the roof, sat Gaara and the blood could be seen dripping off the rooftop. A headband landed by her feet and as she looked down at it, she saw that it was from the Sound. She knudged it away from her with her foot in disgust. If she had anything to say about it, the Sound wouldn't last much longer. Otokagure would crumple beneath her very hands while she choked and wrenched the life out of Orochimaru. Sighing, she ignored the stench and began on her way. She was in no mood to deal with the Sand ninja and she didn't particularily feel like dying that night. Hopefully he hadn't noticed her and she could get away quietly. But apparently luck wasn't on her side that night as sand started to appear yards before her.

She let out a sigh as she stopped in her tracks, watching as Gaara's form slowly made it's entrance. They stared at each other silently for a few moments, neither of them making a single move except for their chests hovering from quiet breaths. Finally, Sakura let out another sigh and turned her head to look at the full moon. She just had to run into the Sand shinobi on a full moon. Just great.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked, her eyes softening at the way the moon shown down on everything in sight. It gave off a surreal feeling. It was comforting, though it was the catalyst for the bloodlust that was within Gaara; the Shukaku. Closing her eyes and letting out a sigh, she gave Gaara a weak look, as if her entire being was exhausted. "Too bad it's accompanied by such a displeasing, metallic taste."

Gaara's eyes seemed to widen at her but just as quickly, they returned stoic.

"Can I help you with something, Gaara?" she asked, her expression turning stoic as well. She stared into his eyes, yet another pair of eyes that she found absolutely beautiful. And she remembered clearly how much more beautiful they were when they were filled with love and joy. With happiness and contentment. She was one of the few people who had seen that side of the shinobi and looking at the way he was at the moment, it was a bit depressing. She wanted nothing more than to run up to him and embrace him but knew that he would, no doubt, kill her on the spot.

She watched as he stepped closer to her, her eyes cautiously watching every move he made. He stopped about two feet from her and she raised an eyebrow, tilting her head in confusion. What was he doing? He hardly ever made this close of contact with someone, even when the Shukaku was removed. Sakura refused to move or advert her eyes from his as he brought a hand up and placed the pads of his fingers against the side of her neck. The touch of his fingers was cold and hard but her body refused to flinch or shudder.

"Why do you not fear me? Or do you mock me?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her and pressing his fingers deeper into her skin.

Sakura thought for an answer. Any _sane_ person would be crying and shaking in their boots, but her body stood perfectly still. As did her resolve. She did not fear Gaara, even though he had the power to rip her heart out in an instant.

"Neither."

"Then why?" he growled.

The kunoichi blinked at him for a moment and then slowly, carefully, lifted up her hand. She stopped for a moment to see his reaction before she placed her hand over his. She visably saw him flinch before he snatched his hand away. He glared at her as she replied, "Because I have lived and fought alongside the Kyuubi. I do not fear the Shukaku."

Gaara's eyes widened at her comment that had sounded so confident. Sakura's face was expressionless and she bowed her head slightly in a respectable manner. Then looking up, she gave him a weak smile. "I look forward to watching you fight next month. If you'll excuse me, Gaara, I have to go home and make sure Naruto doesn't mess up my house."

She could feel him staring at her as she walked passed him and headed on down the road, though her destination not quite being her house. The pinkette wanted to stop by somewhere else before she went home. Sakura wasn't exactly sure what brought the urge on to do so, but she was headed off to an abandoned compound.

The streets were silent as she walked, slowly making her way to the old buildings. It was even more silent there; not a single noise from the crickets or frogs. It was eery and upsetting but she pressed on. After a few moments, Sakura stopped and jumped up on top of the house that she had found Sasuke in all those years ago.

Sitting down, jade orbs looked up at the moon as a cold wind blew passed her, blowing pink tresses along with the breeze. As she stared up at the sky and laid down on the cold roof, she thought about her situation, not worried about the fact that she had willingly walked into the dreaded Uchiha compound by herself at night. What was she to do if all her efforts were for nothing and Sasuke ended up still betraying the village? How would she convince him to stay if that happened?

"Why do you keep staying out by yourself at night?"

Sakura's eyes looked over to the dark haired male behind her and slightly to the right. His face was expressionless as he looked down at her, making her frown.

"What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing." he replied before walking closer to her and sitting down beside her. She watched him while he looked up at the night sky, the stars reflecting brightly in his onyx orbs. Softly smiling, the pinkette turned her head to look up at the stars herself, her arms draped carelessly over her stomach.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" he asked.

"Thinking."

"About?"

Sakura let out a small laugh and closed her eyes, a gentle smile still on her lips. "Curious?"

"Hn."

His reply made her smile brighten and she could feel his eyes on her, though she didn't mind. Sakura thought about her response, about what to tell him. She couldn't tell him too much, that would jeopardize the mission. Silence rolled between them for a few moments and Sasuke wasn't sure if she was going to answer him, though her silence didn't bother him too much.

"I was thinking about you." she whispered without opening her eyes. Without her vision, she wasn't rewarded with the shocked look the Uchiha gave her or the tilt of his lips as he smiled.

Sasuke watched her for awhile, her face calm and beautiful under the light of the stars and full moon. She had a soft smile on her lips as she breathed evenly, her features peaceful. It was odd; to see such a serene image in a compound he had come to relate death and pain to. At first, he wasn't sure why he had the urge to come to this place and he didn't want to. But there was a nagging feeling in the pit of his gut telling him to go. And as he stared down at the pink haired kunoichi, he was glad he had listened.

The Uchiha shifted a bit and soon realized that Sakura had fallen asleep next to him. 'So careless.' he thought to himself, though he felt a small amount of amusement that she could sleep so peacefully next to him, especially where they were. Letting out a soft sigh, he laid back on the roof next to her and looked over her features. When she tilted her head to face him, he was sure that she had woken up but she didn't open her eyes or make any indication that she had, so he dismissed the movement as nothing.

Sasuke didn't even try to stop himself as he reached up and ran a hand over her cheek. Though the wind that blew through the area every now and then cooled the night air, her skin was warm against his cold touch. His smile deepened a bit when she slightly nuzzled her cheek into his palm, making his heart flutter in contentment.

The surrounding area should have upset him, bothered him at least a tiny bit, but at that moment, he couldn't bring himself to care. His fingers slowly warmed as he ran them through her bangs, pushing them back and away from her forehead so he could look at the part of her that was always covered away from the world, even though it was right in front of everyone. It was something that she was always picked on for. He remembered he had walked passed her one day while she was crying, although he didn't know her then so he did nothing to comfort her. The memory made him frown, a feeling of shame and regret running through him.

Sakura had been there for him when he needed a shoulder, even though she didn't know him too well at the time. The female was constantly looked down upon, whether it was because of her forehead at first or if it was because she later became friends with Naruto. And yet, she never let that stop her and she never let anybody bring her down after that. Sasuke had to admire her for that. She had been shunned at first, by everybody other than her family and some close friends. Even with almost everybody going against her, she had kept a smile on her face and always seemed to care for everyone but herself.

Sasuke lowered his arm and placed it by his side as he turned over more and leaned up on his elbow, continuing to watch her sleeping face. Was it wrong to look up to her the way he did? Was it wrong that he cared for her happiness and well being? Or was it wrong that he didn't want her to be with anybody other than himself?

Smiling softly, he listened to the crickets and frogs begin their own, unique songs, singing their hearts out to the night for anyone that was willing to listen. The Uchiha let out a soft sigh and sat up. Being careful not to wake her up, he slid his hands under her form and lifted her, intent on taking her home for the night. Sasuke found it hard to believe that his small smile had never left the whole time he was with her, even as he began making his way out of the compound with her sleeping form in his arms.

"Thank you."

It was barely above a whisper but he had heard it and when he looked down at her, she was looking back at him with half lidded eyes and a gentle smile on her lips.

Thankfully, her window had been open that night so he could easily lay her on her bed and just as easily slip out. With one last glance at the sleeping form, he headed off to his apartment, getting ready for the training that he was supposed to be having in the morning that Kakashi told him about.

~~_SCENE CHANGE_~~

Sakura groaned in annoyance and did her best to escape from the onslaught of noise. Teenage females were crowding inside of the shop, oggling at something inside. Or rather someone. Sakura didn't bother to look though. She could already tell that she didn't know the person by the names the females were calling him by. The kunoichi somehow squeezed herself out of the shop, too enraged by their fangirling to actually buy anything, and made her way toward a nearby training ground. Anger boiled through her veins as she walked the whole way. Trees and grass soon started to cover her vision, getting deeper into the forest that she was passing through.

She growled under her breath, remembering the old days where she used to ogle Sasuke, showering him with praise on every single thing he did. Now seeing it from an older and much more mature aspect, she could see how irritating it was. The kunoichi couldn't stand being around the females that did that, they were so ear-splittingly obnioxious.

Sakura abrutly stopped and slammed her fist into the tree that was right next to her in frustration. She listened as the bark snapped forcefully and started to fly through the air, knocking other trees behind it down as well. Looking over to see the damage, she was slightly surprised to see Neji standing there, watching her and Tenten looking down at the huge pile of broken bark, probably wondering how it got there so suddenly. The pink haired female sighed and rubbed the back her neck, pink tresses sliding through her fingers. "Sorry."

"Its no problem." said Tenten, standing up straight and looking into Sakura's jade orbs.

The pinkette smiled softly at her. "You're Tenten, aren't you?"

"Yeah." the brunette nodded. "You're Sakura, right? Lee talks about you a lot." she laughed.

Sakura's smile turned somewhat sad. "I can't help but feel bad about that. I really don't have any interest in anyone right now. Gotta' train, you know?"

Tenten smiled at her and Sakura was sure that she felt both relieved and excited at the same time. Relieved that Sakura actually didn't have feelings for Neji and excited for the chance to have a female sparring partner. The pinkette wasn't surprised when the next words that left the brunette were in fact, revolved around that.

"Do want to train with us then?"

"Sure." Sakura nodded.

Then, brown and jade orbs watched as the Hyuuga began to walk away. "Where are you going, Neji?" the brunette asked.

"I'll watch." he replied calmly. He then disappeared into the tall branches of the trees nearby. Sakura turned her attention back to the other kunoichi, then pulled a small hairband out of her pocket and pulled her hair into a long, pink ponytail. She couldn't do much about the bangs that fell into her face but they didn't cover her vision so she could live with them. The pinkette walked over the tree rubble and stood on solid ground, facing the brunette as brown eyes turned to look at her.

"Ready?" Tenten smirked.

Sakura smiled at her enthusiasm. "Whenever you are."

The two jumped from their spots in unison, going to opposite sides of the field. Sakura landed on a tree branch and drew a kunai. She pushed herself off of the branch right before three kunai hit the bark. The pinkette flipped in the air, deflecting the shurikan directed at her. Her feet touched the ground for a mere second before she had to jump back from the weapon that was thrown at her. The pinkette dogded the next couple of attacks effortlessly. Her hair whipped around each time she spun in the air as she knocked Tenten's attempts off course. A half hour passed by of dodging and throwing and Sakura could tell the brunette was getting winded. Her attacks were getting slower and sloppier, though Sakura had to admire her precise aim either way.

"Would you stop running and attack already?" she heard Tenten shout at her, making the pinkette smirk. Dogding her attacks took little energy whilst Tenten was getting more tired by the minute. Sakura had expected the brunette to attack and waste her energy, that was the point of 'running'; to tire the kunoichi out and she would be left exhausted and defenseless.

Jade orbs watched the brunette carefully as she dogded another set of kunai. Grabbing two, she took an opportunity of vulnerablity while Tenten tried to catch her breathe. Suddenly disappearing, Sakura appeared behind the knealing brunette, arms snaked around her body as the two kunai pressed against the front of Tenten's neck in a 'X' shape.

Tenten groaned in frustration and admitted defeat. Sakura smiled and dropped the kunai, stepping around the brunette to lend out a hand. Tenten smiled up at her and grasped it, letting the other kunoichi pull her up.

"Nice spar, Tenten." Sakura laughed.

"You're not too shabby yourself. We should do this more often."

"I look forward to it." Sakura nodded, grinning before removing her hairband and letting her hair fall down her back.

"It must be a pain to keep up with that much hair." Tenten said, placing her hand on her hip.

Sakura frowned slightly. "Oh it is. Most of the time I leave it alone though."

At that moment, a loud collection of squeels could be heard nearby and a male came running through the area. He hid behind a tree when a croud of females rushed passed him, not seeing him as they kept running.

Sakura raised an eyebrow and placed her hand on her hip. "Don't you just hate girls like that?"

"That's for sure." Tenten nodded.

The pinkette tilted her head toward the brunette and smirked. "Especially when they're after the guy you want."

"That's for sure." the brunette laughed.

The two females turned their heads to see the guy walking toward them, an exhausted look on his face. Sakura's eyes widened when she got a good look at him. He had shiny white hair that stopped at his shoulders that had a blue tint to it. His eyes were a brilliant purple that shown mischievously as he glanced between the two of them. His smirk was just as mischievous but thankfully, he didn't have that one tooth that stuck out at the corner of his mouth like the person Sakura remembered.

He stopped in front of them and Sakura watched as he seemed to eye Tenten the most. "Hey, sweetie. Can I know your name?"

Sakura looked over at the brunette and saw that she had a cute blush covering her cheeks, her eyes slightly widened. "I-well-"

The pinkette couldn't control a small giggle at Tenten's expression. The normally bold kunoichi was so surprised, she didn't know how to react at that moment. Sakura placed a hand over her mouth when Tenten glared at her but the pinkette couldn't help but smirk. Movement to her left caught her eye and she looked up to see a blur of auburn leap through the air. Her face fell when she realized what it was. Before it could make contact with it's newfound prey, Sakura jumped up in front of the Hyuuga and grabbed the small bundle. The kunoichi frowned as she landed on the branch above the perplexed male.

"I wouldn't mess with him, Kyoun. That one's a meanie."

"But. . ." he whined.

"Awww, you're speaking more clearly than before." she cooed, petting the small fox's head. Ever since they left the Land of Waves, Kyoun had developed a speach pattern, usually saying only her and Sasuke's name at first. Her parents had been spending a few hours per day to teach the fox how to properly speak and Sakura was proud of his work so far. He had come a long way in that short time. Sakura knew that he would be a brilliant animal, it was proven when she found out he could understand the people around him; which just happened to be the first day she had him. On days where she wasn't doing anything, she had tought him a few things concerning his chakra and how to mask it. She figured that was why she couldn't sense him when he snuck up on the group, or rather, his target; Neji.

Sakura gave him a cheeky grin as she chuckled at his pout. Placing him on the branch, she leaned over to look at the Hyuuga looking up at them curiously, Kyoun following suit. "Just look at him, Kyoun. You can feel the meanness rolling off of him in waves." she whispered, her smirk growing when Neji glared at her.

"You're right." Kyoun whispered, his voice soft and silky. "Just looking at him makes me want to hide. But Sakura," he whined. "he has such pretty hair, I couldn't help myself."

"What is that?" she heard Tenten call out. Looking at the ground off from a distance, she watched as the brunette made her way to them, curiosity etched on her face, while the earlier white haired male walked away, seeing that it was safe to make his way back from wherever he came from.

Kyoun's ears perked up as he looked at her. "I'm Kyoun." he spoke, his voice chipper.

"Ohh, aren't you just the cutest thing?" Tenten smiled.

Kyoun's auburn tail swished back and forth. "Oh, I like her already."

Sakura laughed and watched as the growing kitsune jumped off of the branch and landed in front of Tenten on the ground. Looking back down, she saw that Neji was watching the animal curiously. "I'd watch your back if I were you, Neji."

He glanced back up and gave her a blank look. "Why?"

"Because Kyoun, there, has a fetish for hair and likes playing with things he can't have."

He looked back down at the small fox now rolling around in Tenten's arms, clearly enjoying himself. "So troublesome."

Sakura chuckled at him and turned her attention back to the kitsune. "Hey Kyoun, have you seen Naruto?"

The kit turned his head to look up at her. "Last I saw him, he was headed toward the hospital."

Sakura tilted her head in thought. 'I wonder if he's visiting Lee. . . Either that or he doesn't know that Sasuke left yet.'

"He was up all night grumbling about Kakashi training him." the fox spoke, making the pinkette straighten her head to look at him. "I'm surprised you didn't hear him."

Sakura laughed. "'Fraid not."

Kyoun seemed to frown at her as he jumped out of Tenten's arms to sit on the ground. "Do you want me to look for him?"

"No, its fine." she shook her head and jumped down to the ground, landing in front of him gracefully. "Isn't it time for your training?" she smirked.

The kit's eyes widened at her before he took off. She watched casually as he ran off into the distance.

"Is it really wise to let that small of an animal out of your care?" Neji asked as he landed next to her and Tenten.

Sakura shrugged and turned to look at the stoic Hyuuga. "If that small animal can handle an argument with Naruto then I'm not too worried. Besides," she said and turned to look at the direction he ran off to. "I can tell if he's hurt or not."

"How?" asked Tenten, her curiousity for the creature growing.

"He'll send out a spark of his chakra that I, specifically, can feel when he's injured. Either way though, I have to go and show him who's still boss." she smirked.

"You sure are an odd one."

Sakura blinked and her face fell as she looked at Neji. His face was blank but she could see a hint of amusement in his clear eyes. She shrugged and began to walk off as she replied, "So I've been told."

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Ne, Sakura."

"What is it, Kyoun?" the pinkette questioned. The two were walking toward the hospital to check up on the injured, which consisted of Lee and Naruto, though Sakura figured that the blonde just liked the special attention instead of being actually injured.

"Have you seen Sasuke lately?"

The pinkette turned her head to look down at the small kit walking beside her. "Just last night. Why?"

"Just wondering." he replied casually. "I haven't seen him in awhile."

Sakura looked back toward the road and nodded. "You'll be able to see him again in about a month."

"That long?" the kit pouted, making Sakura laugh.

The pinkette watched as the hospital slowly came into view. "Unfortunately."

_~~SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura felt uncomfortable as soon as she stepped into the hospital, her senses on high alert. There was a familiar blood lust in the air yet she couldn't pin point where exactly it was coming from.

"Kyoun." she spoke softly yet firmly.

"Yeah?" the fox looked up and was met with her hard gaze as she looked at the empty front desk.

"Do not leave my side and do not say anything to anyone."

Kyoun nodded his head in understanding. He wasn't sure what it was but he felt that something wasn't right as well. The two made their way down the hall quietly, Sakura searching for the known shinobi that was hidden in the shadows. Deciding to head to Lee's room first, Sakura made her way there with Kyoun in tow and both masked their chakra along the way.

The duo made it to the room, finding that Lee was asleep and by himself in the silent space. After a few moments of checking on his status, noting that his pulse and breathing were even, Sakura felt a familiar chakra outside the door. Her gaze turning hard, she looked over at the kit sitting on the floor next to her and motioned for him to hide. He did so without objection and Sakura made her way over to a corner by the door, doing her best to hide herself. Kyoun had managed to squeeze himself under a counter before the door began to slowly open.

Sakura regarded the male carefully as he stepped into the room, seemingly not noticing her presense yet as he shut the door behind him. Her jade orbs narrowed a bit as he made his way over to the bed. If she couldn't sense the blood lust that rolled off of him, she wouldn't have worried, but she could sense it and she _was_ worried.

When he raised a hand over the sleeping male's body, she figured that was as good of a time for her to step in as any. "What do you think you're doing?"

Gaara whipped his head around to look at her, surprise written all over his face for a moment before his expression turned stoic, obviously not expecting her to be in the room. He didn't answer her, just watched as she stepped closer from the corner to stand next to him. Her eyes narrowed and she was taking a risky chance as she reached out. Sakura knew very well that Gaara could possibly kill her, but she wouldn't let him hurt Lee. Placing her hand on his wrist, she made sure not to put too much pressure as she wrapped her fingers around it.

The Sand nin immediately pulled his hand back as if he were burnt and he glared at her, his body posture tense. The kunoichi looked back at him, though her features were a bit softer than his.

"Why do you protect him?"

Sakura blinked a few times to take in his cold, calm words. Then, without hesitation, she replied, "He's my friend and I won't let you kill him."

He stared at her for another moment, processing her words, until he let out a loud hiss and grasped his head in pain. Sakura had to resist the urge to grab his shoulders for support, knowing that he wouldn't exactly appreciate it. And as he gave her and Lee one last, deathly look before walking away, still holding his head in pain, the kunoichi knew that he would be back. Her eyes trailed him, watching his every move as he left the room, not bothering to shut the door behind him.

Letting out a relieved sigh, a small smile crossed her lips as she watched Kyoun try to squeeze himself from under the small counter. He let out small whines as he squirmed from under the wood, the momentum of his movements and shoves making him slide across the floor ungracefully.

The pinkette let out a laugh at the kit and watched as he looked up at her with a frown. "S'not funny." he mumbled, making Sakura laugh more.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Luckily, Sakura didn't have to pay for the damages she caused during the preliminaries, unlike what Kakashi had told her. The Hokage had been understanding and said that damage was going to happen either way. The kunoichi had been utterily relieved when he said those words and she didn't even bother trying to hide it. Although, she had been completely bored without her teammates and sensei. Without them around, she was at a loss as to what to do. Sakura hadn't realized that she depended on them so much until then. After spending a few minutes of contemplation, she decided to start up her training again. She had worked on her jutsus and chakra and even helped Kyoun develop some new ones.

After about two weeks, Sakura had managed to teach the little kit how to use healing chakra, though he could only attend to the minor things like cuts and bruises. The pinkette was proud of his progress however, and she already knew that he would be an exceptional healer with the amount of control he had over his chakra. The pinkette had managed to start using her chakra as a barrier of sorts, making it so that it could form a sheild around her body and block or deflect any attacks.

It was after one of those training sessions working on her chakra by herself when she got a pulling feeling in her gut to go back to the abondoned compound. Not one to fight her instincts, she did so, walking casually to the district.

The sun was slowly dying down as she looked around, searching for the cause of her senses to flare. Stepping closer to the house Sasuke used to live in, her jade orbs continued to rake over the area, noting that the place looked even more lonely and abandoned when the sun was out.

An uneasy sensation washed over her nerves when she stepped into the house her teammate used to live in, the house where his parents were killed, the house that he was left at by himself, crying and vulnerable. Sakura didn't like the feeling of being in there at all, yet something continued to pull her through the house, eventually stopping in one of the rooms in the back of it. The room was dark, even with the amount of light shining through the window into the quiet space.

Jade orbs searched through the room, noting that, like everything else in the house, the bed and dressers were covered with dust, untouched by any human contact. Sakura walked further into the room, realizing what had subconsciously called her to that place. Stepping beside the one window in the room, she looked out of it and stood beside the silent person now beside her.

"I thought you were training with Kakashi-sensei." she spoke softly, unsure why he was there instead of getting stronger.

"I was, but he told me that I needed to clear my head."

Sakura's eyebrows furrowed with concern. Was he having trouble with something? Sasuke hardly ever needed to take a break from training to 'clear his head'. Looking over at him from the corner of her eyes, she saw that his face was blank, almost weak looking. "What's wrong?" she asked, turning her head to fully look at him.

She knew that he was purposefully dogding her question when he asked his own, "Why are you here, Sakura?"

Turning her head to look back out of the window, she watched as the sun filled the sky with dying colors, the horizon taking on a beautiful image. She could vaguely see dark clouds in the background and the smell of water was making itself more apparent. "Its going to rain."

"Hn."

Silence floated through them, the only sound being their breathing as they watched the sun setting. It was true what he said, Kakashi had told him that he needed to clear his head. Sasuke had been distracted a number of times with his thoughts during training. Thoughts that revolved around a certain kunoichi that he just couldn't seem to shake off. He was also plagued with thoughts about Itachi and the other males that they had met at the earlier rounds of the Chuunin exams. He knew that Lee was still in the hospital, but the Uchiha also knew that the Leaf shinobi had feelings for Sakura. She also didn't seem to mind his attraction one bit, that fact unnerved him. Yet, the dark haired male had a suspicious feeling that Lee wasn't the only one seeking after Sakura's attention.

The thought made him grit his teeth angrily. And the worst part of it was that he had no idea if she cared for them or not. She could have feelings for one of them and he wouldn't even know about it. Looking at her from the corner of his eye, he watched as she stared out at the horizon, her eyebrows furrowed in thought. Then again, if she did care for someone else, he couldn't stop it, no matter how much he wouldn't like it. His thoughts died when he glanced down to see her nibbling on her lower lip, an act he sometimes caught her doing when she thought no one else was looking. It was a for sure sign that she was thinking really hard or worrying about something.

As if his body had a mind of it's own, his hand reached up and cupped her cheek, tiliting her face to fully look at him. Almost instantly, the kunoichi stopped chewing on her lip and her eyes widened as she looked at him.

"Sasuke?"

Sakura wasn't sure what was going through his head as he continued to stare at her. His dark eyes were clouded over and half lidded. She silently watched as his lips barely parted and he began to lean in toward her. The pink haired female felt her heart skip a beat as he slowly came closer to her. Her body was completely still and her mind had shut down. He was a few inches away from her when she saw doubt enter his eyes and he tilted her head down. A soft blush coated her cheeks when he gently kissed the top of her head and barely nuzzled his cheek in her pink locks.

As if it were a way to cool the soft tension in the room, he repeated his earlier question, "What are you doing here, Sakura?"

A gentle smile crossed her lips as she carefully wrapped her arms around his form. Letting out a small sigh, she closed her jade orbs and focused on the warmth that he provided. "Being with you." she replied warmly. Her smile deepened when a pair of arms wrapped around her and a hand rested comfortably in her hair as he continued to rest his cheek on the top of her head. "What were you doing here by yourself?" she asked curiously.

"Thinking." he replied calmly.

"About?"

Sasuke let a small smile cross his lips. "Curious?"

The kunoichi smirked against his shoulder. "Hn."

The dark haired male couldn't help but chuckle and at that moment, the sound of light rain started hitting against the glass window. Sighing, the Uchiha ignored the loud pounding of his heart and his body's protests as he pulled back.

Sakura frowned slightly as she looked up into the male's eyes. It seemed her disappointed expression amused him slightly as he let out a soft laugh. Her jade eyes watched him curiously, just then noticing a change in him that had probably been there for awhile, yet had still escaped her notice.

"You're taller than me." she mumbled, tilting her head to further her investigation.

"Yeah." he smirked. Though it was only about an inch or two, he was still taller than her and it suddenly made her feel small in comparison.

"Thats not fair." she pouted, her hand shooting up to measure the difference in their heights. After sighing, she crossed her arms over her chest and frowned up at him.

"I can't help it that you're short." he smirked.

The pinkette huffed and looked away, her frown disappearing as she watched the rain hit against the window harshly. "We should probably get going before the rain gets worse."

"Hn."

Turning her head to give him a warm smile, Sakura reached down and grabbed his hand. The kunoichi wasn't sure how he felt being in the compound or how he would be while walking through it, but she at least wanted him to know that she was there to support him. Giving him one last reassuring smile, she began to pull him through the house.

Sasuke did nothing to stop her from pulling him around, perfectly willing at that moment, even as they left the house and the rain started to hit them harshly. Lifting up an arm to cover his eyes from most of the downpour, he looked over to see Sakura doing the same, except with a bright smile on her lips. He had to resist the urge to reach back for her hand when she let go of it and ran forward, let out a cheerful laugh.

His onyx orbs regarded her curiously when she ran and stopped yards away in front of him, spinning around with her arms stretched out. When she saw his curious and confused expression, she laughed and ran back over to him, both of their bodies already drenched from the rain.

"What are you doing?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

Her smile never faultered as she looked up at him. "Playing."

Sasuke tilted his head to the side quizzically. "Why?"

"Why not?" she shrugged. The kunoichi knew that it was childish to play in the rain, or to play at all for her mental age, but she couldn't resist the urge to.

Before he could reply, the pinkette grasped his hand and started to pull him again, a bright, excited smile on her lips. Looking back at him as he fought to catch up to her, she spoke teasingly, "You always act older than you are, Sasuke. Why not act your age for once?"

The Uchiha frowned as he walked faster to stand next to her. "I don't have time to act my age."

"Just this once? Please?" she asked, her smile and eyes hopeful.

The dark haired male let out a long sigh before nodding weakly, "Fine." He was seriously against 'playing' but. . . it was just the look she gave him, practically begging for him to give in to her resquest. So he did.

Instantly, Sakura's smile brightened and her strides became faster as she headed to a place where she knew that a huge puddle had formed surrounded by rocks. If she had her way, they would be there for the next few hours with her splashing a certain male in the face and trying to get away before he could do anything about it.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

The pink haired female sniffled as she ran her hands over her eyes tiredly. "Ugh, my head." she grumbled as she sat on her bed ungracefully. Not a second later, her teammate came walking through her door with a white towel.

Her plan had gone exactly like she hoped it would. She had found the puddle and thankfully, it was clear and without all that dirt and mud because of the rocks that sat at the bottom and around it. Sakura had never stopped smiling and laughing while she continously splashed the Uchiha in the face, causing him to sputter out the water and narrow his eyes at her. Though he had surprised the pinkette when he managed to tackle her and pushed her all the way into the water, soaking her already drenched body even more.

The two had to run to her house since it was closest, completely wet and shivering. Sakura's mother wasn't all too happy when they stood in her living room, the water dripping from their bodies wetting the floor around them. Sasuke and Sakura quickly changed into warmer clothes, Sakura wearing a pair of shorts and a tank top, and Sasuke, unfortunately for him, having to wear some of Naruto's clothes until he returned home.

"That's what you get for wanting to play in the rain." Sasuke replied calmly, though with a hint of amusement in his voice.

Sakura frowned up at him as he stepped in front of her. "You had fun though, right?"

The male let out a soft sigh as he placed the towel on the pink tresses in front of him and began to dry them off as gently as he could. "Yeah." he mumbled.

The female below him turned her head up and pushed part of the towel up so she could see his face, smiling up at him warmly. "That's good to know." Tilting her head to the side, she watched him carefully as he rubbed the towel through her wet locks.

Sasuke frowned down at her, her head moving throwing off his movements and progress. "Hold still."

Sakura smiled brightly up at him, amusement in her eyes, but she did what she was told and straightened her head for him to continue. After a few moments, a monsterous itch was creeping up at the back of her throat, slowly making it's way up to her nose. Her nostrils twitched for release, but she had to keep it in for a bit longer. She just had to. . .

_Ah shit. . ._

Luckily, her mouth was open when it happened, so it hadn't escaped through her nose. Unfortunately, Sasuke had bent down at the wrong moment and was hit in the face with small drops of her saliva. His eyes narrowed as Sakura gave him a sheepish look, her tongue still sticking out of her lips. After a moment of his silent glaring, the pinkette's tongue went back into her warm cavern and she gave him an innocent smile. "Sorry."

The female could tell that he was about to grumble out a reply, but before he could, she grabbed the towel that was still on her head and started to gently wipe off his face. "I tried to hold it in, I swear."

He mumbled out a reply that she couldn't quite understand from behind the towel but she didn't press it. Probably some snarky remark that would make her frown. Either way though, she found amusement in his distress. Moving her hand up to wipe at his forehead, she moved his bangs out of the way that hung there and asked calmly, "So when are you going back to train with Kakashi-sensei?"

"Tomorrow." he replied as she pulled away, a small smile on her lips and mirth in her jade eyes. "Where's Naruto?"

Placing the towel beside her on the bed, Sakura pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. "He's off training with some old pervert."

She let out a soft laugh when he gave her a quizzical look. Resting her chin on her knees, she watched as he sat on the ground and made himself comfortable in front of her. "You're both getting so strong." she said, though mainly to herself.

Sasuke looked up at her, his eyebrows furrowed a bit. He hated that he was about to say this, he hated the fact that it was true. Looking down and away from her gaze, he whispered, "But you're still stronger."

A frown grazed her soft features as she tilted her head to regard him carefully. He suddenly looked frustrated, though she couldn't blame him. Restraining from letting out a sigh, her arm reached out and her fingers grasped his chin so that he could look at her. His teeth were gritted and his brows were furrowed as he looked up at her, making her frown deepen.

"Is that any way for an Uchiha to talk?" she questioned. "You give me too much credit."

Sasuke's eyes widened for a moment before his face fell into a stoic expression. He watched as her frown slowly turned into a kind smile and the hand that was holding his chin slid up to play with his bangs. His body moved of it's own accord when his hand reached up and grasped hers. If he was going to place her palm over his cheek or remove it from his person, he didn't have time to find out since at that moment, her mother knocked on the open door.

The two genin turned their heads to see Sakura's mother giving them a small smirk, making the two frown up at her. "If you're staying the night Sasuke, the couch is free."

And with that, the woman gave Sakura a knowing look before heading out of the room, leaving the pinkette to softly chuckle to herself and the Uchiha to give said kunoichi a quizzical look.

"Anyway." Sakura laughed, smiling back down at the dark haired male. "Are you going to stay the night?"

Sasuke shrugged and watched as the female before him retracted her hand from his loose grasp and placed it on the bed beside her. "Probably not."

Sakura frowned, not liking his answer at all and the male could tell that he wasn't going to get his way that night. "Oh, no." Just like he thought. "You're not going back out there in that storm tonight."

Sighing, he stood up and made his way to sit on her bed. The kunoichi watched closely as he laid down, the blue of his shirt greatly contrasting with the red of her covers and pillows. A pink eyebrow arched up as the male made himself comfortable and hugged a pillow to him under his chin.

"What are you doing?" she asked curiously.

"Getting comfortable." he replied without looking at her, his back facing toward her as he laid on his stomach lazily.

Sakura huffed, "I can see that."

The Uchiha chuckled under his breath at her. Then, without warning, a grunt left his lips when he felt a body sit on top of his back and then moved around carelessly for a few moments. Finally, the pinkette settled down in an odd position. Her leg was draped over his and her arm was resting over his back while her head somehow nestled itself under his arm.

"Comfy?" he asked without looking at her, amusement laced in his voice. He always knew that she was different, but sometimes the things she did was just strange. He was never bored with her around though.

Sakura made a grunting noise in response, making the male chuckle for the hundredth time that day. A comfortable silence fell between them for awhile, both content and not willing to break it. His onyx eyes roaked over the room that he was in. The last time he was in there he didn't get a good look around since the light was off then. He had only _really _seen it when she picked him up from the Uchiha compound that one day, which happened years ago. Though he had only thoroughly seen it once, he remembered most of the details and it was slightly amusing that not much had changed throughout the room. It was still a warm, red color that seemed to fit the pinkette perfectly. There was still a desk on the other side of the room and bookshelves that were filled with books and scrolls.

A low mumble brought him out of his thoughts and he shifted his head to see Sakura mumbling something into the bed covers, her face covered by the bed and her hair. Turning around carefully so as not to wake her up, he watched as she shifted as well, though still sleeping. The kunoichi unconsciously shifted again to where her hand and cheek were laying on his arm.

The dark haired male couldn't help but think that the whole situation was odd. That she was odd. She was so strong, yet she could act so childish at times. She had a strong will and attitude, yet she could fall asleep so easily next to him. So independant and she could still manage to act like she needed them. Like she needed _him._ It was a reassuring thought; to think that she needed him to be around.

Sasuke wasn't sure exactly how much time had passed as he continued to look at her, he wasn't sure when the kunoichi had somehow managed to crawl up closer to him, he also wasn't sure when he had nuzzled his cheek into her soft, pink hair, but before he knew it, his eyes had closed and he had fallen asleep with her hugging his side.

~3~

Please review :)

A/N: I know that Gaara didn't kill that Sound ninja(forgot his name) at that exact time, in fact it was a month early, but I changed that detail to fit my plot :)


	9. Wanting to Protect

Thank you for the reviews, for your patience, and for your love of this story :) There is A LOT of tension in this chapter and not just sexually. Surprises will happen, tears will be shed, and fear will be expressed.

Ketsurui15, I actually like the idea of writing a oneshot about that moment and I don't mind at all :) I've actually already started on it and hopefully I'll be able to put it up in a few days. I also hope it'll be to your liking. :)

Nina Morenos, Thanks for pointing that out. I honestly forgot about that movie and I'm glad that you mentioned it. I already rewatched it and I plan on adding that mission in the later chapters.

Please enjoy the chapter :)

Chapter 9: Wanting to Protect

A warm body was pressed against her as she turned and rolled over the warmth, passing by a content heartbeat along the way. Letting out soft murmurs, the lithe, female form slowly made contact with the edge of the bed, and before she could even process what she was doing or where she was going, her body slid off the last inch of the bed's surface.

Sasuke was startled awake suddenly when a loud noise went off beside him, or rather, below him. A frown grazed his features as he looked over the edge of the bed to see a pink haired female grumbling with her body sprawled out on the floor. "Ah hell." she grunted in slight pain and discomfort.

"What are you doing?" he asked, too much sleep still in his system to even care that the answer to his question was obvious. Letting out a small yawn into his palm, he watched as the pinkette began to sit up, a frown and scowl set on her features as she glared at the floor.

"Oh, you know." she grumbled, "Just getting my eating share of carpet."

A small smirk grazed his lips at her snarky comment but didn't reply as she looked up at him from a sitting position with a frown on her lips. "You pushed me off, didn't you?"

The Uchiha's smirk left his lips and a frown of his own formed as he watched her. After a moment of silence between them, Sakura's features turned into a small pout. "You did, didn't you?"

"Hn." he replied, his smirk growing back at her pout.

"I knew it." she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest and narrowing her eyes at him.

He softly scoffed at her until lifting up his body and pulling the cover and sheet down so he could get under them. The male could feel a pair of jade orbs on him as he did so, but he ignored her curious look as he made himself comfortable and placed his hand under the pillow that his head laid on, leaving only the back of his head in her view.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked, looking up at him from her position on the floor, her eyebrows furrowed and her head tilted to the side.

"Going back to sleep." he replied calmly before letting out another yawn.

Pink eyebrows furrowed even further at his answer. "Why aren't you sleeping on the couch?"

"Why are you still on the floor?" he retorted.

Sakura gritted her teeth, having clearly heard the amusement and smugness in his voice. At that moment, Sasuke turned his head to give her a smirk, which she immediately glared at. "Its the middle of the night, Sakura. Would you _really_ make this harder than it has to be?"

The kunoichi let out an annoyed sigh and stood up, frowning at the dark haired male. "Alright, scoot over. And keep your hands to yourself."

A soft chuckle was his reply as he shifted over to make room for her to join him on the bed. Her eyebrows furrowed and with a frown back on her lips, she looked into his calm onyx orbs. "I'm glad you're comfortable enough to sleep in my bed."

The Uchiha softly smirked at her before he turned around and closed his eyes. After a few moments of silence between them, he was slightly surprised when she spoke back up softly, "G'night, Sasuke."

Her words and the small yawn she emitted after that brought a small smile to his lips. "Night."

It was ridiculous how fast Sakura could fall asleep in his presence, and after a few moments when Sasuke decided to see if she had fallen asleep, the male wasn't surprised that jade eyes were closed and her breathing was even. Shifting around to lay on his side and to fully face her, he watched silently as her hand came up to rest under her chin in an adorable manner. His onyx gaze hovered over her calm features that seemed so peaceful at that moment. In fact, Sasuke had noticed that she always seemed to be the most peaceful when she was sleeping next to him, though he was sure that was just wishful thinking.

Trembling caught his attention and he looked down to see that her lips were slightly shaking. Furrowing his eyebrows in confusion and concern, he watched as the kunoichi's eyes clenched and she bit her lip. She was having a nightmare. A hand was about to snake up to wake her up from her bad dream when a small whimper left her lips, stilling his movements. "_Sasuke_."

He wasn't sure why, but his hand began to tremble a bit and he felt a sort of guilt in the pit of his stomach that she would say his name with such a pained sound. What had he done to hurt her? Suddenly, his heart dropped when she muttered out her next words, "Don't go."

Frowning deeply and though the female was still asleep, he gently pulled her head to tuck it comfortably under his chin, hoping that that could somehow comfort her. He wasn't sure what she was referring to by 'don't go', but he didn't like that he was the cause of her pain and for her to be dreaming of it, it must have deeply bothered her. So much for being peaceful. Though soon enough, Sakura had snuggled up against him again and he could hear a content sigh leave her lips and feel a small smile against his collarbone. With that, the Uchiha fell asleep and a few hours later, they were awakened by an overactive kitsune pouncing all over their bodies, excited to see his favorite 'playmate'. Unfortunately for him though, the Uchiha left to go train before he could get his hair attacked, leaving a pouting baby to whine to Sakura.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Kyoun! Where are you?" the pink haired kunoichi yelled throughout the streets of Konoha, a look of bewilderment and concern on her face as she searched for the small kit.

"Sakura?"

Said kunoichi turned around to look at a curious Ino, not even bothering to try to hide the worry she felt at the loss of her kit. "Hey there, Ino."

"Who are you looking for?" she asked quizzically.

Before she could reply, Sakura felt a familiar presence making it's way over to the female duo. Whipping her head around, she watched as Neji came walking toward her with a frowning animal in his hand, holding him by the scruff of his neck down by the stoic male's side. The pinkette took off running toward the two, a relieved smile on her lips. Stopping a few feet in front of the Hyuuga, Sakura watched as he lifted up his arm and placed the kit in her awaiting arms.

"Sorry if he caused you any trouble Neji." she said with relief and gratitude in her voice and a smile on her lips as she looked up at him.

He nodded his head in return and Sakura frowned when she heard a familiar snicker come from behind her. Before the blonde could say anything on the matter and embarrass her, the pinkette continued, "Well thanks. I'll just be on my way."

Before he could reply, she turned around and she began to walk off with a pouting fox in her arms and an amused blonde by her side. The pinkette could feel eyes on her back for awhile as she walked and it slightly unsettled her. Glancing over to her right, she mentally started the count down. Three. . . Two. . . One. . .

"Are you _sure_ you don't like him?"

And right on time.

Sakura let out a small groan and tried her best to focus on the kit in her arms instead of the blonde beside her. Failing at that and looking back up to see Ino grinning at her, the pinkette couldn't help but sigh and give in. "No, I don't like him, Ino."

The blonde's grin immediately fell into a disappointed frown. "Then who _do_ you like?"

"No one." she replied, tilting her head to the side and frowning at her female friend.

"Yeah right." Ino scoffed, making Sakura's frown deepen. "You're constantly surrounded by guys. You at least have to like _one_ of them."

"I don't." the pinkette pouted.

By that time, the duo were outside of the Yamanaka's flower shop, both frowning at each other as they stepped inside. "That's not cool." complained the blonde. Stepping behind the counter, she scowled at the pinkette bending over to look at some of the flowers, her small kit sitting leisurely in her lap. "You need to get out more. Someone other than with Naruto and Sasuke."

Sakura immediately stilled her movements, her hand pausing over a Lily, and looked up at a smirking Ino. 'Oh no.' she thought to herself, 'This can't be good.' Narrowing her eyes, she questioned the blonde suspiciously, "What are you planning on doing?"

"Nothing." she replied before sighing and shrugging. Giving the pinkette a skeptical look, she placed her elbow on the counter and rested her cheek in her palm. "What are you doing?"

Turning her attention back down to the flowers, she spoke in a soft voice, "I'm getting flowers for Lee."

"By the way, Sakura?"

"Hm?" the kunoichi hummed, tilting her head to the side to listen to Ino carefully.

Blue eyes narrowed before she frowned. "What was up with that stunt you pulled with Neji at the exams? Have you been that strong this whole time?"

Sakura's eyes widened for a moment and she had no idea how to reply to the female. "I-uh-yeah." she finally settled on, nodding at the end. Ino's next action wasn't what the pink haired female expected at all. Well, then again, she kind of did expect something like this from Ino. The blonde gave her a smirk as she leaned farther across the counter.

"I knew you were one to throw surprises and all, but damn." Ino's smirk didn't leave even as she continued, "I'd have to challenge you for real some time." 

A smirk of her own lit up Sakura's face. "I look forward to it." The pinkette was glad that Ino wasn't upset with her for practically letting her win and Sakura was also glad that she didn't ask why.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

The crowd roared to life, anger and frustration surrounding the whole area, echoes of disapproval clear to everyone. Sakura listened to their rants silently, their shouts exclaiming their dislike that the youngest Uchiha wasn't there to participate. Sakura knew that he would come, but the young male wasn't what she was worried about, and even though Kakashi wasn't there yet, the kunoichi just knew that he was worried as well. Guilt pawed at her very being, knowing that the Hokage was that much closer to death and she wasn't going to do anything to stop it. Not even the fact that his death was the result of Tsunade becoming Hokage could calm her down.

"Sakura?"

Jade orbs looked up and to the right to see a concerned blonde; Ino. "Sasuke will be here, don't worry."

Sakura's eyes widened in surprise for a moment until a gentle smile grazed her lips. "Yeah." she nodded. The pinkette wasn't sure why her friend would mention him, well she could guess, but the way Ino said it, it was very similar to the way she used to comfort her. Like Ino just knew that Sakura cared for the Uchiha and that she was worried for his well being. Just like when the blonde used to comfort her when he was involved. In her past. . .

Ino's face brightened up a bit but she didn't say anything else on the matter, instead looking over to the front when the next match was supposed to begin. Sakura watched as Konkuro backed out of the fight with Shino, not at all surprised since he did it last time. Naruto's fight with Neji was already over, with Naruto as the victor. The battle wasn't too different from the last time, but when Naruto unleashed some of the Kyuubi's chakra, it was like a big slap in the face for the pinkette. It was a sign that he was definitely getting stronger, that he was growing up, that he would soon stop leaning on her for support to gain strength, and that the climax in her mission was drawing even nearer.

Sighing, the pinkette watched and a smile of amusement coated her features when Shikamaru was pushed over the edge unexpectedly by Naruto. Whatever happened next, Sakura ignored, too deep in her thoughts to actually pay attention. Her thoughts mainly contained the dream she had about two weeks ago, when she had fell asleep next to Sasuke.

At first, the dream started out fine, with her, Naruto, and the Uchiha all hanging around, talking and doing the normal things, which consisted of the two males bickering with each other and her laughing at them. The odd thing though, was that her hair was cut short, only stopping at her shoulders and her body wasn't as fit. Naruto glared more often at Sasuke and had flirted with her, asking her for a date. The dark haired male, which had made her heart clench even in the dream, was the main difference. He was colder, more detached and he would try his best to ignore or dismiss her. _It was her memories. _Then, the dream had changed drastically, she was back at _that_ spot and she was crying, telling him to take her with him. Telling him not to go. . .

A deep voice shook her out of her inner musings. "Sakura."

Said kunoichi whipped her head around to look at the calm shinobi standing beside her. "Kakashi-sensei."

He nodded his head toward the arena. Jade eyes blinked for a moment but then turned back to see that Sasuke was standing in the arena, his posture calm and confident and slightly facing toward her. There was the tiniest tilt of his lips, showing off a small smirk, and his orbs were looking straight into hers, making her breath hitch with the intensity, even though they were so far away from each other.

"I think he wants you to watch, Sakura." said the copy ninja, a teasing amusement in his tone.

The pinkette nodded her head and that was when the Uchiha looked away from her and at his opponent, his smirk gone and a serious expression upon his features. Then the battle started. Jade eyes watched carefully, noting every single hit and scrape that was landed on both males. And though she wanted to continue watching, she had to discuss something with the man beside her.

"Kakashi-sensei."

"What is it, Sakura?"

The pinkette tilted her head up to see that the copy nin was looking down at her, his brow furrowed and she could tell that he was frowning. No words were spoken between them for a moment, though from the way Sakura's lips were down in a deep frown and her eyebrows were furrowed worriedly, Kakashi knew what was on her mind; the battle.

Sighing, he tried to reassure her, "I know."

Both of them turned their attention back to the ring when a loud scream sounded throughout the whole area. Sakura could see the dark haired male's arm sticking through a large, sand barrier. When Sasuke managed to pull his hand back out, pink eyebrows narrowed and teeth gritted when a large claw crawled through the hole that was made and swung around until retracting again, missing it's cautious target.

As soon as she saw the hand, Sakura jumped up out of her seat and hissed, "Shukaku."

"Sakura, what's wrong?" Ino asked, looking up at her friend with concern. "I'm sure Sasuke will be fine."

Her trembling fists clenched, eager to do something as she watched the sand barrier start to crumble and Gaara emerged, panting and holding his shoulder in pain as blood flowed through his fingers.

"Sakura?" her sensei called out beside her, looking down at her anxious form. He was anxious as well, especially considering the way her body was tensed as if she were ready for battle. That could only mean one thing. The attack was about to begin.

She nodded her head as if sensing his thoughts, watching as the Sand siblings began to take Gaara off so he could recover, the Uchiha following closely behind not too much later. "Get ready."

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Sakura!"

Onyx eyes widened when a flash of red and pink appeared before him, crouching down in a battle stance. Though his body was in pain from the curse mark on his neck, his senses and nerves were soon overwhelmed with fear and concern when the female before him was slung to the side by a giant claw.

Sakura grunted when his attack landed and she was pinned to a nearby tree. Though she wasn't knocked out this time, her jade orbs remained closed as her teeth gritted and her head laid to the side.

For some reason, they had gotten there a little later than usual, that or Sasuke had pissed off Gaara in some way so that the fight was harder, causing his chakra to lessen and the mark to start trying to take over sooner. The kunoichi barely had enough time to jump in the way of the attack with a kunai to stop the red head from hitting the weakened Uchiha.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled again and Sakura couldn't keep in a groan of pain when the claw around her tightened it's hold, and that was when she noticed the extra amount of pain her abdomen was in. The kunai she had held in her hand had unintentionally stabbed her and the more Gaara tightened his grip, the more it would dig into her flesh. Ohh what a pleasant way for things to turn out. The blade was digging right through her rib and if the hold tightened anymore then she would definitely pass out.

The Uchiha struggled to get up at first, grunting in pain from the mark, but his body seemed to run off of pure concern and instinct when he saw blood seeping out of the corner of the kunoichi's mouth, leading him to ignore the pain he was in and make his way over to her as quickly as he could, limping along the way.

The hold that was on her tightened again and her ears hummed, greatly drawing out the sound of Naruto and Gaara fighting. She could vaguely feel blood pouring out between her lips, but that didn't bother her. Slowly, the area around her abdomen became numb and she started to lose feeling in her fingers and toes, the numbness spreading thoroughly through her form. Her mind started to shut down and became fuzzy, no longer being able to form any coherent thoughts.

"_Sakura!"_

_What?_ Was someone calling her? Who? Who was calling her? She wasn't sure whose voice that was.

"_Wake up! Don't go!"_

Was she leaving? Where was she going? Who was calling for her? What did they want? All she wanted to do was go to sleep. . . Was it wrong for her to rest for a little bit? By that time, her body was completely numb. She couldn't feel the kunai as it dug further into her skin, slowly reaching up to puncture her lung. She couldn't feel the blood that flowed down her mouth and chin in small rivers. And she definitely couldn't feel the male that was hovering above her with a kunai, doing his best to break her free from her confinement. However, for some strange reason, when something wet hit her cheek and began to slide down, it was like a warm pool spread throughout her body. The further the warm liquid traveled down her cheek, it left soothing trails in it's wake. Then another hit her, soft and caressing as it slowly ran down her face, running down the curves of her cheeks until finally resting on her parted lips. They kept coming, one after the other, and though they were warm on her skin, the taste of the liquid that crawled onto her tongue was salty and filled with emotion.

"_Sakura."_ the unknown voice whispered next to her ear, filling her fuzzy mind with it's gentle and smooth texture. "Sakura." it whispered again and she could hear clearer this time. It was laced with worry and fear. Wait a minute. That voice. . . It wasn't unknown after all, she knew that voice. She knew it very well. But why did it sound so. . . sad?

Slowly, her body started to regain feeling and the grip that had her pinned to the tree loosened incredibly. Blood flowed from her mouth more freely as her body began to fall, her weak muscles and tired reflexes doing nothing to stop it. Arms instantly wrapped around her pale form and she could feel hair fall over her face as her own whipped around behind her.

Then she could feel her body being gently placed on some sort of solid ground. Jade orbs fluttered open to a sight that she never imagined she would see on the dark haired male's face. The female wasn't surprised when he did it in his sleep the first time he slept at her house, but to see him doing it while he was conscious, it was definitely strange and overwhelming. At that moment, Sakura knew. She knew that something had changed between them, mainly her. Grief clutched at her heart and mind at his expression. His hair was soft against her cheeks, the softness of his bangs caressing her skin lovingly.

Lifting up a weak hand to cup the male's cheek that was leaning over her body, she felt warm liquid running against her fingers and over her hand. With a quiet and gentle tone, she spoke, "Why are you crying?"

Sasuke's eyes widened as he looked down at her kind smile, just then realizing that the female was right; that he _was_ crying. His teeth gritted angrily. How could he have let this happen? How could he have let her get wounded so badly? _Why did she have to throw herself in front of him?!_ Placing his hand over the one that was on his cheek, he subconsciously nuzzled it closer to him as he stared down at her. The relief that he felt when she had opened her eyes quickly disappeared when jade orbs fluttered, slowly closing again.

"Sakura." he urged, tightening his hold on her hand. "Don't close your eyes." The dark haired male didn't like the wound she had at all and he wasn't sure how bad it was, but the kunai was in her pretty deeply. If she willed sleep to take her then he wasn't sure if she'd live or not. No, he didn't want her to die. She couldn't die. She was too precious to them. Too precious to _him_. She couldn't. She just couldn't. He wouldn't let her.

"Pull it out." she mumbled without opening her eyes.

Onyx eyes widened for a moment before he gritted out, "No, that will just make you bleed out more."

"Please." she whispered.

"No." he replied sternly. How could she ask him to do that? Did she _want_ to die? Did she _want_ to leave them? The thought that she wouldn't want to be around anymore made him want to tear up again, but his tears had long since stopped when he realized that she was still alive and breathing.

The pinkette gritted her teeth at his stubbornness, but she wouldn't back down either. If she was going to heal her wounds then the kunai would have to be removed. Opening her eyes to look up at his concern filled orbs, she spoke reassuringly, "Trust me on this, Sasuke."

The Uchiha wanted so badly to decline. Everything in his being was telling him not to listen to her words. That if he pulled the weapon out then she would surely die from blood loss and there was no one around at that moment that could help them. No one around that could help her. His teeth gritted and his eyebrows furrowed as he looked into her eyes. Even though she was most likely on the verge of death already, he still saw that same kindness that made his heart flutter, he still saw that determination that made him look up to her, and he still saw that same trust she had for her teammates that made him feel needed.

"This is going to hurt." he whispered before the fingers on his hand circled around the kunai, his other hand still cupping hers to his cheek. He bit his lower lip and waited until she gave him her nod of affirmation before pulling the kunai out as quickly and gently as he could.

He was expecting a scream of pain to leave her lips but all that came out was a loud grunt before both of her hands went down to her wound and a green glow floated from her palms. He watched silently and carefully as she bit her lip and closed her eyes in concentration.

"How bad is it?"

Onyx orbs lifted up and landed on the concerned and frightened face of Naruto as the blonde came to sit beside them on the grass. The Sand siblings were nowhere in sight but a good portion of the forest was destroyed. Looking back down at the pinkette's calm and exhausted face, his eyes widened when one of her hands slid from the wound and landed by her side. Naruto gasped loudly while Sasuke quickly grasped her wrist, checking for her pulse.

Letting out a relieved sigh, he looked back over her features and noted that her breathing was even and that her wound was slowly starting to close up, though it was still in serious condition. "She's just sleeping."

"We should get her back quickly." Naruto chirped in.

"Yeah." the Uchiha nodded, making sure to keep her one healing hand in place while he picked her up and carried her in his arms, concern filling the both of them as they ran back to the village.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"_Its a miracle she's even alive now."_

_What? Who is that?_

"_Come on you two. You've been here ever since she got here. Surely she would be fine long enough for you to get some fresh air."_

'Kakashi-sensei?'

"_No."_

"_We're not going anywhere."_

Jade orbs slowly fluttered open, only to close again from the harsh light of where she was at. From what she could smell, it was most likely a hospital room. Her abdomen was extremely itchy and when her hand reached over to scratch at it, she found that her stomach was covered by bandages. Groaning and opening her eyes again, she gazed irritably up at the face of her sensei.

"I see you're awake." his gentle voice spoke and almost instantly a relieved blonde was by her side.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled, making the pinkette cringe at his volume, almost instantly giving her a headache. "I'm so glad you're awake."

"I'm fine now." she groaned out before trying to sit up. Her muscles screamed at her in protest, making her grit her teeth in pain. Automatically, she glanced down to see that she wasn't wearing a shirt, though her entire torso was covered in bandages so no one could see her naked chest.

"You shouldn't be moving around just yet." their sensei spoke. Hands were placed on her shoulders to steady her slightly trembling form as she looked up into the concerned face of Naruto. She glanced between the blonde and their sensei, a frown on her lips, instantly noticing that something was missing, or rather; someone.

"Where's Sasuke?"

The kunoichi watched as the copy ninja moved out of the way and showed the dark haired male that stood a ways behind him. Sakura gazed over his features carefully. He wasn't looking at her, a deep frown was on his lips, and his eyes were narrowed at a spot on the floor to the side.

"Sasuke?" she spoke up tentatively.

His head didn't move from it's angle but his onyx eyes shifted to look at her for a moment until glancing back down as if ashamed. He didn't want to look at her. He didn't have the right to look at her. Sasuke didn't want to see her look at him with that very same kindness and trust she had shown him when she was practically dying before him.

The Uchiha's gaze lifted when he heard shifting on the bed and he looked up to see the weak female getting up. His eyes widened when she gritted her teeth and began to stand. Before she could fall or anyone else could move, he was in front of her, wrapping her arm around his shoulder for balance.

Sakura looked up into his calm features, only seeing a hint of concern in his onyx orbs, but she knew it was there. Then the duo looked away from each other and glanced over to the one that gasped; a shocked Naruto.

"What's wrong?" the pinkette asked, raising an eyebrow quizzically.

"Y-you're bleeding." he gaped.

Glancing down, a frown adorned her lips. Sure enough, she was bleeding and the bandages around her wound were only soaking up the crimson color. Her movements must have reopened her wound. Before Sakura could protest, she was being gently pushed back to lay on the bed. A frown covered her lips as she looked up at the dark haired male pushing her back.

"I'm fine." she grumbled, making him frown at her and his eyes to narrow disapprovingly. She watched carefully as he pulled over a chair from the side to sit next to her bed. He slumped over and leaned on the white covered bed, his head on his crossed arms as he looked at her.

Looking up from her laying position, the kunoichi watched as Kakashi began pulling a gaping Naruto out of the room, the scene bringing a smile to her lips. Her back was on the mattress and her head on the pillow as she looked over at the Uchiha, whose face was only about a foot away from hers. He had a glazed over look in his eyes, a sad look, and she didn't like it. Deciding to break him out of the depressing musings, she spoke up, "How long have I been in here?"

The dark haired male blinked a few times until his gaze focused on hers. "Three days."

She thought for a moment, the conversation she had heard when waking up. If she had heard correctly, they hadn't left the room since then. "And you've been here this whole time?"

"Hn."

Frustration filled her at his comment, mainly because she most likely knew how he had spent those three days. Narrowing her eyes, she spoke in a hard, knowing tone, "And you haven't eaten anything, have you?"

Sasuke had to look away from her intense gaze, though mostly because she had figured him out. He had been so worried about her waking up and getting better that he wasn't hungry at all during the past three days. A nurse had come in a few times for him and Naruto to eat something, but he wasn't in the mood for food, although that didn't stop Naruto from eating his share so it wouldn't go to waste.

A frustrated groan had him looking back over to the pinkette to see that she was staring up at the ceiling, her features taking on a look of defeat. "Damnit Sasuke, why didn't you eat?"

He didn't answer, just continued to stare at the side of her face. After a few moments of silence, she realized that he wasn't going to answer her and she narrowed her eyes as she turned to look at him. He blinked a few times in response to her sudden shift of mood.

"Why didn't you eat?" she repeated. The fact that he hadn't eaten in three days unnerved her greatly. She didn't know why he would take such a course of action but she didn't want him doing that. She didn't want him doing that at all. A frown was on her lips and her voice clearly showed how disappointed she was with his actions as she asked, "How could you be so careless?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed at that and he felt suddenly irritated. "Careless? _Careless?!_" He didn't mean to do it so roughly, but when he stood up, his chair flew back and landed on the ground roughly. His teeth gritted, and although Sakura didn't appear shocked by his actions, he continued in a harsh tone, "Who the _hell_ are you calling careless?!" Fists clenched at his sides, eager to take his frustration out on something but knew he couldn't. "Do you have any idea what you did, Sakura?! What _you_ did was _careless_!" He had come so close to losing her; they all did and she had the nerve to say _that_? She was so close to dying, when the medic said that some of her ribs were fractured and that her lung had come close to being pierced, none of them were sure that she was going to make it.

The kunoichi gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes and was about to move to look properly up at the seething Uchiha, but thought better of it with her wound. "Why are you so upset with what I did?" she questioned. She had more than likely saved his life. There was no telling what Gaara would've done if that attack had landed on the dark haired male. No. Sakura knew what would have happened. Gaara would have killed him. The kunoichi didn't regret her actions.

"Why you ask?" he seethed and before he could stop it, he yelled out what was on his mind, what had been on his mind the moment that she was hit by Gaara's claw, "_Because I was fucking scared, damnit!_"

Both pair of eyes widened with shock at what he had just admitted. Jade orbs blinked multiple times, trying to sink in what she just heard, while Sasuke looked away from her, embarrassed. The dangerous tension that was between them moments ago instantly disappeared, although a softer, different, more awkward tension was put in it's place. Sakura wasn't sure what she should do now, although she did know that she wasn't about to stay in the hospital. If she wasn't healing a patient, she wasn't going to be there, especially not _as_ a patient. Then, she also knew that she had to get some food into the Uchiha's stomach.

Letting out a sigh, she placed a hand over her stomach and applied healing chakra to her wound, only stopping when the outer layer was closed. All she had to do was make sure that she didn't reopen it and she would be fine. Sakura groaned as she carefully sat up, Sasuke turning to watch her movements cautiously. Jade orbs turned to quizzically look up at onyx.

"Have you seen my shirt?"

He shook his head and a light smirk grazed his features, relieving most of the uncomfortable air between them. The pinkette raised an eyebrow at him for a moment until looking around the room for the garment. Not spotting it whatsoever, she sighed in defeat and reached up to place a hand on the male's shoulder. Without any other warning, she brought her hand up and performed a jutsu. Not a moment later, the room was empty and the duo appeared on the other side of the village, in Sakura's house.

The Uchiha quickly had to right himself before he lost complete balance and fell over. He hadn't been expecting that at all. Looking up at the female curiously, he watched silently as she moved freely throughout her room, going over to a dresser to pull out some fresh clothes.

Sakura opened a drawer and then looked down at her attire, frowning at the fact that her shorts were just as tattered she imagined her shirt must have been. Sighing, she pulled out a white shirt and a casual pair of blue shorts. Placing them on top of the dresser, she closed the drawer and opened another one that held medical supplies. It was a smart thing to do really; always keep some kind of bandages and rubbing alcohol in every room when you lived with Naruto. Pulling out a roll of fresh bandages, she placed them on top of her clean clothes and began to work the knot out of the ones around her torso.

Seeing that she was unwrapping the only cloth that was keeping him from seeing her chest, a small blush began to coat his cheeks. "S-Sakura."

"Hm?" the pinkette hummed, stopping her movements and tilting her head to the side to look at him. She smiled at his flabbergasted look. "Oh, you're so cute when you blush." His blush deepened at her comment, though she figured it was more out of embarrassment than anything else. But either way, it surprisingly made her heart skip a beat. To see _Sasuke_, of all people, blushing; it was absolutely adorable in it's own right.

Laughing softly when he adverted his eyes away from her, she went back to unwrapping the bindings, not at all concerned with the fact that she didn't seem to have any modesty. She had gotten over that while working at the hospital, learning real quickly that modesty didn't matter in the real world.

Soft hands let the bloody bindings fall to the ground and began to wrap the new ones over her stomach first, careful to put just enough pressure against her wound. She was so focused with her bindings that she didn't notice onyx orbs raking over her form, taking in every detail that was left on display before it was wrapped up and out of his view.

Sasuke could feel his throat grow dry as the pinkette casually took off her shorts and threw them to the side to land in a corner. His eyes slowly took in the creamy thighs that she had to offer and wasn't at all bothered by the cotton, red undergarment that hugged her hips and backside. In fact, it seemed to spur him on. It did nothing to cover her thighs and hipbones, yet it blocked him from seeing the thing that his body secretly yearned to see.

Biting his lip to keep in his disappointment, he watched as she pulled on a clean pair of shorts, along with her clean shirt. Before she could turn around to fully face him however, a pair of arms were suddenly wrapped around her.

"Sasuke?" Sakura spoke as she tilted her head slightly to see a head full of dark hair resting on her shoulder. A silent gasp left her lips as he tightened his hold on her and pulled her petite form closer to his, pressing his clothed length against the small of her back. It was then that the pinkette noticed that he had grown another few inches during the rest of the time that he spent training with Kakashi. He was growing quickly, leaving her to be her short self. The realization was a bit frustrating if nothing else.

The pinkette was brought out of her thoughts when a breath of warm air hit her ear and one of his hands came up to run through her hair and then caress the other side of her neck. A blush coated her cheeks when she felt her hair being pushed aside and a pair of lips pressed softly against the heated skin of her neck. She was blushing. Why was she blushing? But if she remembered correctly, she had blushed when he kissed the top of her head while at the Uchiha compound. This is ridiculous. She _never_ blushed unless she was really embarrassed. The kunoichi had never blushed when she had momentary lovers in her past. Given that she didn't care for them and they were just one time things, considering that most of them were for missions. Actually, all of them had been for missions, except one. That was her first time; when she lost her virginity. Too bad she couldn't remember who it was with since it was so long ago and she didn't particularly care about her virginity unlike most other females. Plus she had been incredibly drunk that night. . .

Another gentle kiss was placed right next to her ear and she was sure that her blush had spread that far. "S-Sasuke?"

A low hum in acknowledgment was his reply as he lifted up his head and tilted her chin with his hand, his arm still snaked around her torso, keeping her in place against him. Their faces were less than an inch away and being up so close to his onyx gaze, Sakura found herself unable to breathe at not only their proximity, but also the intensity in his eyes. What she saw was pure lust, though she wasn't surprised, considering that she _had_ just stripped in front of him without being ashamed or shy enough to cover anything up. Yet, there was something else there in his dark orbs, something that she couldn't name, it was that same emotion that always stumped her when it came to this particular male. Her heart skipped a beat and her face flushed even more when his eyes became half lidded and he started to slowly move in more, his lips slowly parting. The kunoichi silently gulped and was about to close her eyes when she heard someone running up to the room.

"Saakuuraaa!" yelled a small fur-ball as he ran into the room but then let out a grunt when he bumped into a pair of legs.

A sparking electricity that left tremors throughout the entire body, the catching of breaths that left one breathless, and the loud pounding of hearts that could be felt in their ears. Both pairs of eyes widened when the force that Kyoun ran into the dark haired male's legs caused him to move forward, making the two's lips connect for a brief second until they pulled away from each other in embarrassment.

Sakura couldn't help but reach a hand up and touch her lips as she stared down at the ground. It had only lasted for a second or maybe two, yet it had still managed to make her mouth tingle and her face to heat up, which was a feat in of itself considering her past. Glancing over, her jade eyes were met with the sight of Sasuke's back, though she could imagine that he had a small blush on his cheeks too.

"What are you guys doing?" asked a perplexed Kyoun, confused as to why the two were suddenly embarrassed and completely oblivious as to what had just transpired.

Sakura got over her blush and smiled down at her kit, watching as he tilted his head to the side and gave her a quizzical look. "What is it, Kyoun?"

He waited for her to pick him up before he replied, "I could sense that Sasuke was here and I wanted to see him."

"Aww." the kunoichi cooed and smiled brighter when said male turned his head to look back at them with a frown, his supposed blush gone. "You hear that?" she teased, "He wanted to see you."

The Uchiha couldn't stop her before she managed to place the small kitsune in his dark locks as an attempt to make the tension between them lessen. Frowning further, he turned around and stared down at the grinning female, his heart still fluttering and his lips still tingling though he made no indication that it was so.

Sakura tilted her head to the side and gave him a bright smile while closing her eyes. "Welcome home, Sasuke." She opened her jade orbs to see a gentle smile on his lips as well as he looked down at her.

"Yeah." He was glad to be home. He was glad that Sakura had survived and that she was smiling up at him just like she used to. He was glad that he had her in his life.

The pinkette let out a laugh when his smile turned into an annoyed frown, his irritation directed toward the spinning kit playing and pawing at his hair. Shaking his head, he was satisfied when the fur-ball let out a loud whine and fell off of his head and into Sakura's awaiting arms.

The kunoichi smiled down at the pouting Kyoun as he nestled himself into her chest, throwing the Uchiha a 'you're so mean' look. "He's getting big, isn't he?" He had gained about three pounds since she had found him all those months ago, she could barely fit his body into both of her hands, and he was growing with each passing day.

"Hn. He's getting fat."

Sakura couldn't help but laugh at his comment, even as Kyoun turned a glare to the smirking male. "I am _not_ fat."

"Come on, you two. Some of us haven't eaten lately." Both chuckled when the auburn animal let out a disapproving whine that they were picking on him.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Is that you, Sakura?"

Chopsticks sat in between soft lips as the kunoichi turned her head to look at the duo that walked up behind her. "Tenten?"

Sasuke looked over and instantly, his eyes narrowed at the male that had stopped to speak to them. Stoic, clear eyes stared back at him, almost daring him to say something about him being there. The dark haired male gritted his teeth. He remembered his and Sakura's handshake, the way they made contact with each other, and he didn't like it.

"Aren't you supposed to be in the hospital?" the brunette asked, amusement in her eyes and voice. A smirk crossed her features when she looked up to see Kyoun resting leisurely on a head of pink hair. Sakura was _supposed_ to be at the hospital, cramped in that white room, but instead she was sitting at Ichiraku's, eating ramen with Sasuke.

Sakura smirked herself. "Like they could keep me chained to a bed. I don't have the patience for that."

"Clearly." the Hyuuga spoke, finally breaking contact with the glaring Uchiha to look at the pinkette.

Everyone then turned their attentions to the ground when Kyoun jumped off of Sakura's head and between the two groups. They silently watched as his blue eyes looked from Sasuke to Neji and then back. He did that a few more times until turning his head to frown at Sakura. She shrugged in return, automatically knowing that he was having trouble with choosing which male he wanted to mess with.

"What's he doing?" asked the brown haired female of the group while eying the kit curiously.

With one last look over at Neji, Kyoun made up his mind and turned to the Uchiha, landing clumsily on his lap, making Sakura smirk. "Choosing which one he wanted to torture." she chuckled while looking at the fox. She ignored Sasuke's scowl as she leaned over and started to scratch behind tall ears. Even if Neji had 'pretty hair', as Kyoun so boldly put it, it seemed that the dark haired male was still favored by her small kit.

There was a snicker beside the pinkette that made her smirk deepen. Pulling back, she gave Neji and Tenten a gentle smile. "I'll see you two around?"

"Of course." the brunette nodded before beginning to walk away. Out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke noticed that the stoic Hyuuga stayed for a moment longer until continuing on his way as well. The fact that he had waited made anger bubble up in the Uchiha's stomach, since Neji clearly wasn't staying longer to talk or look at him, but at the female beside him.

Sakura watched as the male's eyes narrowed and his teeth gritted as he glared down at the ground. Letting out a sigh, her hand reached up and landed reassuringly on his hair. His glare lessened but his eyes were still a bit narrowed as he looked up to see understanding jade. Her features were gentle and caring as she looked at him, the rest of his anger instantly disappearing as his heart fluttered and his face fell.

Having already eaten most of her food, the pinkette stood up and grabbed Kyoun off of the Uchiha's lap with her free hand as she ruffled dark locks around with her other one. A frown grazed his features as he looked up at her and she pulled her hand back.

"Be good while I'm gone." she laughed and before he could reply, she was gone. Letting out a sigh, his eyes glanced back over to the two bowls, instantly frowning. She had left him to pay for the food.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

A few hours passed, Sakura taking her time as she took a shower while Kyoun curled up into a ball on her bed. The shower only took about half a hour, so she settled on looking over some scrolls while sitting on her bed, the kit still sleeping next to her. That was how the rest of the time passed; quiet, calm, and boring, until Sakura decided to leave.

The kunoichi opened her front door, intent on going to visit Lee and see how he was doing, only to see an irritated looking Sasuke about to open her door. She blinked in surprise for a moment. "Sasuke?"

"Have you seen Naruto?" He sounded anxious, rushed even, and she immediately shook her head.

Pink eyebrows furrowed in concern when he gritted his teeth and quickly rushed off. Where was he going? And why did he look so upset? If she remembered correctly, the Akatsuki came to Konoha around this time and they were searching for the Kyuubi. Naruto wasn't in the village and Sasuke had asked her where he was, running off to go find him. Then they came back and he was injured. They needed Tsunade so she could work on him. But what injured him so badly?

Jade orbs widened and she immediately took off, somehow managing to shut the door behind her in her haste. She took off in the direction that she saw Sasuke going, quickly catching up to him with her speed. He only sparred her a single glance until pressing on even faster, though she matched his pace with ease.

"You shouldn't be following me." he spoke in a harsh tone.

She replied calmly, without hesitation, "You have your reasons and I have mine."

No more words were said and they quickly made it to a nearby town, where Sakura could instantly feel four, familiar chakra signatures. Sasuke followed eagerly as she led him to an inn on the other side of the village.

Loud footsteps could be heard as they ran up stairs, a different kind of determination and anticipation in each of their eyes. Eyebrows were narrowed and anger boiled when they stepped into the hallway to see four people; one, their teammate, another being a pervy sage, and then two members of the Akatsuki. Everyone turned around to the loud sound of a thousand birds chirping and saw Sasuke glaring with his Chidori roaring.

"Itachi." he seethed, looking straight into a pair of red and black eyes.

~~:)~~

Ohh cliffhanger! I already have a good idea how I'm going to do the next chapter but I want to see what you guys have in mind. I'll update again in a few days with the next chapter. Hopefully by then I'll have the oneshot that was requested up and ready and the next chapter for my other story up by then too :)

Please review :)


	10. Dreams and Fears

Thank you so much for the reviews. I really appreciate them and I enjoyed reading what you guys had in mind about what would happen :) Unfortunately, I don't have the oneshot up yet or the next chapter for the other story but I'm getting there :) I don't plan on there being a lot of smut yet, that will be reserved for the later chapters ;)

Thanks again for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter :) I also tried to go into deeper detail about Sasuke's inner, conflicting feelings for Sakura during this chapter.

Chapter 10: Dreams and Fears

"Itachi." he seethed, glaring straight into a pair of red and black eyes.

The older Uchiha ignored his brother for a moment, his eyes wandering over to the female that was next to him and continued to stare at her as if searching through her very soul. Both of the genin caught this and reacted in their own way; Sakura going into a battle stance and adverting her eyes to avoid the Uchiha's Sharingan, Sasuke. . . taking a less pleasant course of action.

The fist that his Chidori flared in slammed into the wall next to him as he ran toward his brother, teeth clenched and eyes narrowed dangerously. Though what happened next was so quick, Sakura had no trouble keeping up with her eyes. Two bodies flew passed her, causing her hair to whip around from the speed that they moved.

Whipping her head around, she saw that Itachi had a hold of Sasuke and had him pinned to the wall, the force that he was slammed into it caused the wall to break and crack. The youngest Uchiha coughed but turned up to glare up at his brother and gripped at the arm that was pinning him. Bad move.

However, before Itachi could put the male into the genjutsu, Sakura had moved with lightening speed and aimed a punch at the older male, completely ignoring the onlookers. Itachi brought his other hand up to block the fist that was aimed at his head, everyone in the hall hearing the loud sounds of cracking and snapping, signaling that his hand was broken.

The kunoichi gritted her teeth, making sure to keep her attention adverted from the male's eyes, which had widened for a moment in complete surprise at the strength that she possessed. Pulling back her other arm, she threw another fist forward, satisfied when he let go of his hold on Sasuke to block her attack again. Unfortunately, instead of blocking it, he deflected her punch by knocking her wrist off course.

Sakura glared as she moved forward, the momentum from her attack too strong to stop as her fist landed into the wall next to them. A loud crash could be heard, along with the rumble of the whole inn, as a huge amount of smoke clouded the area around them. The pinkette barely had time to prepare another attack before she was pressed against a part of the wall that wasn't destroyed, which didn't leave much. Fortunately enough, it was farther down the hall where Itachi wasn't near his brother. _Unfortunately_, the Sharingan-user was hovering above her and once the smoke cleared, Sasuke could get a good view of their sides.

The pinkette ignored Naruto's yells as she glared down at the floor. At least she had gotten the Akatsuki member to release his brother before any real damage was done. Although, she doubted that Sasuke would be able to stand up any time soon.

"Sakura."

A growl left her lips at the sound of her name on his lips. It was foreign. This wasn't the man she had once called a friend, even if it had mainly been for her mission. This wasn't the man that had looked up to Konoha, this wasn't the same man that had once cared for his brother. This was Itachi Uchiha of the _Akatsuki_. And though he was acting for the dreadful organization, the pinkette could tell that Itachi Uchiha of Konoha was still there, deep down. She could feel it as he watched her; the familiarity, the acknowledgment of her skills that he had witnessed only seconds ago. It was like he could see straight into her soul as he looked into her eyes, though she refused to meet his intense gaze.

How the _hell_ was he able to keep her down?! Teeth gritted as arms lifted to grip at the single arm pushing her into the wall. What the hell was allowing her to keep his hold on her? Was it guilt? Was it shame? Either way, her grip on his arm was strong and she could slowly feel the bone there straining, resisting the urge to snap under the pressure that she forced upon it.

The next thing that happened had everyone gasping and it took everything in her being not to look up into eyes that were no doubt still boring into hers. Lips were pressed gingerly against hers and Sakura, though completely shocked, could feel a familiar heat in her stomach, but not because of the fact that _Itachi_ had just kissed her and still was, more like because a certain shinobi's chakra was skyrocketing with anger.

The mouth above hers pressed against her harder, beckoning her to glance up even for a split second, but she wouldn't. Sakura knew what he was trying to do and she wouldn't fall victim to his Mangenkyou. A startled gasp left her when teeth bit down on her lower lip and instantly a warm tongue slipped through her lips, though she still didn't look up.

Sasuke watched in raging fury at what his brother was doing and he struggled to stand up from his spot on the floor. He. Was. Pissed. And the fact that he could see Itachi's tongue inside Sakura's mouth only fueled on his anger, along with the long string of saliva that connected their lips when the older male pulled back. Still glaring at the older Uchiha, he found most of his composure and readied another Chidori, the sound of a thousand birds chirping angrily. Then his eyes lowered from his brother to see Sakura looking at him almost apologetically and muttering something that suspiciously looked like 'sorry' before she lifted up a hand and preformed a single hand sign.

Sakura had to do it, she couldn't let Sasuke attack his brother again and get hurt worse than he already was. He most likely already had broken ribs, she couldn't let him get injured more. So she did what she thought was best; deplete his chakra to a low level, not low enough to intentionally harm him but low enough that he couldn't do any ninjutsu at the moment.

A strangled gasp left Sasuke's lips as he felt his chakra die down to a small amount, his Chidori immediately disappearing. What the hell did she do? What happened to his chakra? And why did his stomach burn like it was on fire? Sasuke unwillingly fell to his knees back on the ground, clutching a hand to his abdomen. And then, foolishly looking up, he met the eyes of his brother and then fell into a world of black.

"Sasuke!" yelled the pinkette and blonde genin as they watched their teammate lose focus and fall down to his side on the ground. Anger flooded the kunoichi and everyone knew, that it wasn't a good thing to mess with Sakura when she was pissed. In her moment of anger, the grip she had on the male's arms loosened, only to come up to her lips for the pads of her fingers to be bitten. She quickly did the same to her other hand and started doing numerous hand signs in lightening speed. Itachi's grip didn't falter, even as the kunoichi slammed her palm into her stomach and let out a pained groan.

Instantly, chakra roared through Sakura's veins, her chakra network getting more comfortable with the sudden change each time she undid the seal. Glaring violently at the male's chest, her fist glowed dangerously with her chakra as she quickly pulled it back and threw a punch into the Uchiha's stomach. His grip on her disappeared as his body was thrown back into the wall, the power from her punch causing him to go through the walls and land somewhere outside.

Without giving anybody time to think about her next move, Sakura suddenly appeared by Itachi's partner and kicked him in the side, causing him to let out a grunt of pain and to fly through the walls to join his partner outside. The kunoichi kicked off the ground furiously, practically flying through one of the hole's that she made with one of the Akatsuki's bodies.

A chakra enhanced fist connected with the grass covered ground, thankfully at the back of the inn where there were no streets or people. The two male's barely had time to move out of the way before they got hit by the brutal attack. The ground cried out and crumbled under the pressure, creating a large crater in the earth. Sakura spread out her chakra, searching for the two attacker's. Itachi would most likely hide away somewhere until he caught her off guard while Kisame would do a frontal attack.

Just like she expected, the blue, sword-user suddenly appeared above her and Sakura jumped back just in time to dodge his attack. The contact his sword made with the crater caused dust to fill the air but the kunoichi's eyes were quick and she jumped out of the way right as Kisame jumped through the fog, aiming his sword at her. He seemed stunned for a moment by her fast movements and Sakura took that moment to her advantage, putting a great deal of chakra into her fist as she aimed a punch at his chest.

The Wave ninja barely had enough time to block the attack as he brought his weapon up to take the damage. Sakura gritted her teeth at the pain it caused to her knuckles, the sword practically eating through her skin since the bandages around it fell off some time before. Bringing another fist filled with chakra down onto the weapon, her ears were met with a satisfying cracking noise. A smirk grazed her features while Kisame's eyes widened in shock.

The pink haired kunoichi pulled back her right fist, charging it with even more chakra and was prepared to deliver another blow to the sword when it was pulled away and she met contact with a hard chest, causing the male to groan in pain and fly backwards, his ribs definitely broken. Ignoring the blue, shark man for a moment, Sakura glared at the area around her, trees aligning the horizon in front of her where the Uchiha could be hiding.

"_Itachi!_" she yelled, _"Get your fucking ass out here!_" She was still thoroughly pissed at the male. Trying to capture her best friend and then screwing with her other best friend's mind even more, those were two things that just crossed the line. He wouldn't get away without answering to her wrath first. She didn't give a damn about falling victim to his Mangenkyou anymore, as long as she got to crush his face in, or some other body part that would permanently disfigure him.

Kisame stood up from his position on the ground and watched her carefully, his eyes narrowed and cautious, but she ignored him. After a few seconds of silence met her ears and there was no movement around her, she realized that he wasn't going to show himself.

Sakura growled lowly in her throat before shouting again, "Damnit Uchiha! I swear if you don't come out here, I'm gonna shove your partner's sword up your sorry ass after I find you!"

There was a sudden movement to her right and Sakura looked over to see Itachi walking toward her calmly. The kunoichi gritted her teeth and swung her leg around to make contact with a hard chest to her left, watching as Kisame fell to the ground harshly before cursing and righting himself to stand up. Before Sakura could do anything else, a kunai was pressed to the front of her neck, digging harshly into the skin there. Her gaze shifted to where the inn was at to see Naruto not too far off, looking tense and worried. Sakura was sure that if Juraiya didn't have a hold of the blonde's arm, he would have came rushing over and tried to protect her.

Jade orbs narrowed as she looked back up at the blue skinned male in front of her, stepping closer to her until stopping close enough for her to kick him in the chest, a high possibility of breaking even more ribs. Suddenly, his body erupted into smoke and Itachi appeared in his place, jade unwillingly looking back into red, his eyes being exactly where she had landed her kick.

"_Damnit._" the kunoichi mumbled before her eyes began to glaze over. The last thing she remembered was Naruto and Juraiya rushing over to her and her body instinctively reacting to threat around her, chakra forcing a barrier around her body. The kunai that pressed into her neck flew away from her harshly, almost hitting the Uchiha in his chest before he moved out of the way to dodge it.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

_Pain scorched throughout her body, a constant stream of agony rushing through her veins, threatening to take over her very being. Her teeth gritted and her eyes clenched closed, silently hoping that the pain would stop. But it wouldn't stop. The torture just continued on in an endless circle. She wouldn't cry out, although it was hard from releasing a scream as her body went from icy cold to flaming hot as the blade continued to pierce her skin. At first, Sakura wasn't sure if Itachi knew how to affect her mentally, but apparently, she had been all too wrong._

_Tears unwillingly welled up in the corner of her eyes as she listened to the taunting words of her teammate before her. He growled out things that she didn't want to hear, that she didn't want to think about. The blade pierced her shoulder next, digging into the flesh, unfortunately drawing out a gasp from her lips. Words of hatred entered her ears, threats of betrayal, and promises of her sorrow. Even in this dark, corrupted world, memories flashed through the female's mind as the sword sunk further into her shoulder._

_Blood spilled out of her wound as the blade was pulled out, drawing out an unwanted hiss. Jade orbs slowly opened and was met with such a heart wrenching hate in those orbs of his eyes. A dark smirk crossed his lips as he laughed at that pain she was in. Then, he leaned forward and positioned the sword above her left breast._

_His voice was laced with despise and such a terrifying lust as he continued to smirk at her and whispered, "I hate you, Sakura." Then, the sword drove forward, sliding through her flesh and piercing the delicate organ that kept the body alive._

A loud, piercing scream could be heard throughout the whole hospital as a female body flung herself forward across her bed, panting and sweating through her clothes with the sheets and pillows spread haphazardly over the bed. Tears ran down her cheeks but she couldn't feel them as her entire being shook in wild tremors. Her trembling hands came up to her heart, subconsciously pouring healing chakra into the wound that she knew wasn't there. Her breathing was fast and heavy as she tried to calm herself down. Glancing down at her stomach, she realized that her seal was spinning around her navel furiously. Frowning, she quickly put the seal back into place and groaned in discomfort.

How long had she been out? What happened to the Akatsuki members? To Itachi? More importantly; how were Sasuke and Naruto? Were they alright? Well, she could imagine that the former wasn't. His mind wasn't like hers after all, wasn't as mature or developed. He was most likely still unconscious and would be until someone healed him.

Loud footsteps could be heard running down the hall, getting closer to her room by the second. Jade eyes looked up just in time to see a head of blonde hair busting through the door, rushing over to stand next to her.

"Here she is Granny!" His face was anxious as he stared down at her, but as she blinked calmly up at him, his features turned into that of shock then confusion.

His words slowly sunk in through her fuzzy head. Granny? That was what he called Ts- A hand quickly, but gently moved a head of blonde hair out of the way, only to see another head full of blonde hair. Tears immediately filled the kunoichi's eyes as she watched her second mother make her way toward her. Had Sakura really been asleep for that long? Though it didn't matter, her Shishou was now standing before her with a gentle smile on her lips and in Sakura's opinion, that was one of the best things she could ever wake up to.

"I'm glad to see you're awake." Tsunade spoke gently. "You're friend here was worried about you."

Sakura had to force her gaze away from the woman and look back over at Naruto. He was giving her a sheepish look, making her raise an eyebrow in return. "I'm glad that you're okay now, Sakura." he smiled.

The pinkette smiled back at him until turning a serious gaze to the future Hokage. "Have you checked on Sasuke yet?" The pinkette was definitely worried about his mental state. There was no telling what Itachi had forced his brother to witness, though she had a pretty good guess that it was the massacre all over again. Sakura could get reacquainted with her Shishou later, she had to make sure Sasuke was alright first.

"We were just about to go to him." she replied.

Sakura stood up anxiously, eager to get to the dark haired male. Not bothering to wait up for the two blondes, the pinkette ran down the hallway, letting instinct take over where she thought Sasuke was.

Soon enough, she reached his room and pushed the door open, running over to his side to look over his features, Naruto soon following her actions and standing beside her. They were both eager to see him better and though the pinkette knew that Tsunade was curious as to how she could just run around like nothing happened after being asleep for about a week, the blonde didn't say anything as she stood next to the Uchiha and began to tend to him.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Sasuke!" the two youngest ones in the room yelled with relief as onyx eyes slowly fluttered open, letting reality seep into his mind after so long in a personal, living hell. Sakura carefully looked over his expression; it was weak, tired, and solemn. She was about to wrap her arms around him and pull him into a welcomed embrace when someone unexpectedly beat her to it. Jade orbs widened as Naruto gripped Sasuke's shoulders and pulled him close, a little too roughly for Sakura's tastes, but just enough to be brotherly.

"I'm so glad you're back, Teme!" the blonde yelled with relief, making the Uchiha frown.

"Get off loser." he grumbled in reply, weakly lifting up his arms to push the blonde away.

Naruto chuckled as he let go and pulled away, letting Sakura step closer to the bedridden male. She smiled kindly down at him and he looked up to meet her eyes, his facial expression stoic, though she figured it was better than him being angry. Then again, he _did_ just wake up after a long slumber, she doubted his mind was that caught up yet.

"Welcome back, Sasuke." she said softly.

He nodded his head at her and she could vaguely see his hand twitching under the sheets and quilts that covered him from foot to neck. Her smile deepened but she made no move to reach under the covers to grab his hand, at least not yet.

The Uchiha carefully sat up in his bed, lifting a hand up to run it over his sweaty bangs as he continued to look into gentle, jade orbs. His features looked apologetic for a moment until turning back to stoic as if he didn't want the others to see that side of him. The kunoichi understood and she wasn't about to press it.

Sakura adverted her gaze to look back at Tsunade, giving her a grateful smile. "Thank you."

The blonde woman nodded in return before turning to leave. "I better go check on your sensei."

Everyone's ears perked up but only two stayed in the room, with Naruto following the future Hokage outside the door, completely satisfied that his two best friends were alright and that it was time to visit Kakashi.

The pink haired kunoichi turned her attention back to the frowning male in front of her. Images of the nightmare she had to live through flashed through her mind but she quickly shoved them away. After all, the Sasuke that she previously saw was nothing compared to the one looking up at her. That one had been cruel, heartless, vile, and corrupt. This one. . . though at times he could be distant and cocky, he could also be thoughtful. Dare she say it, he had been sweet towards her a few times.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

Sasuke watched her for a few moments, memories of what happened with Itachi running through his mind. Itachi. Itachi had. . . Anger and jealousy immediately flowed through him as he gritted his teeth and lowered his gaze down to the soft pair of lips that had always seemed to taunt him. He watched as her smile slowly turned into a frown and he knew that she realized what he was thinking about. His eyes narrowed, though not entirely upset at the owner of those lips but more at the person that had invaded them. Although, Sasuke did feel frustrated that she had practically _allowed_ his brother to kiss her, at least that was the way he felt. Also, there was the fact that she did something to drain his chakra so he couldn't help her. That's right, he couldn't help her. . .

Sakura watched silently while the Uchiha's eyes continued to glaze over in thought, his features not bothering to hide the anger and irritation he felt as he clenched his teeth and narrowed his eyes. It was only when he turned his gaze up to look into her eyes when she felt taken aback, which was saying something. Jade orbs widened at his intense stare, clearly still angry. But this time, he seemed to be angry at her.

"Why did you stop me?" he questioned, his voice low and warning.

"I-I-" Sakura stammered, not at all sure how to explain her actions.

The kunoichi watched as he stood from his position on the bed and moved to stand in front of her, his eyes narrowed down in an aggressive manner. Sakura couldn't help but gape up at him, his whole presence screamed of power and danger and yet. . . she wasn't scared. Somehow, she knew that he wouldn't willingly hurt her, unlike in her past where he tried to kill her. Though, after spending so much time with him, Sakura had her suspicions about his reasons that day.

"You, of all people, should know how I feel about Itachi, Sakura." he practically growled.

Sakura knew that he wanted his brother dead, that he wanted nothing more than to take out his revenge for the murder of his clan. Yet, she had gotten in the way, drew Itachi's attention away from him and to her. She had made it so that Sasuke couldn't fight his brother. "I only tried to-"

"I don't need your protection." And he hit it right on the mark. Sakura did try to protect him, tried to protect him from his brother. It seemed he could read her just as good as she could read him. Not surprising though, she was never really good at hiding her intentions from this male, not that she could keep much from his observant gaze anyway.

"Sasuke, I-" Whatever she was going to say next, she didn't get to finish since the dark haired male had closed the distance between them. Sakura's eyes widened and she thought her heart had literally jumped up into her throat. A blush instantly flooded over her face as he pressed closer to her, urging her to respond. _Damnit._ What was it about this guy that always managed to make her blush?

Sasuke pushed even closer to her and brought a hand up to rake it through soft, pink locks. He couldn't keep in a satisfied moan when she finally decided to press back. Bringing his other hand up, he placed it on her cheek, tilting her head to the side to deepen the kiss. The Uchiha wanted nothing more than to erase the memory of his brother from the kunoichi's mind. He wanted her to know that he could be better than his brother in every possible way, that he was good enough for her, and she shouldn't want to be with anybody else. That was what he wanted her to see. That was the main thing on his mind.

When Sakura felt a warm tongue slide over her lower lip, she willingly parted her lips, silently astonished how someone she knew never kissed anybody before could be so skilled with their mouth. Though when she felt his tongue slip passed her lips and began it's exploration of her mouth, she felt her knees go weak, something that had never really happened before and it slightly caught her off guard. Hands reached up to wrap around a warm neck, pulling the male even closer to her, if that was even possible. Healing chakra poured into her hands as she ran her fingers through his dark hair, massaging his scalp.

Tingles raked through his whole body when she applied her chakra, easing the racing thoughts throughout his mind and the tension that his nerves felt. Sasuke groaned in response to the wonderful feeling, cupped the back of her head, and raked his other hand down her back to pull her body flush against his.

Sakura could swear that her blush spread to her ears and neck when she felt his erection through his shorts as it rubbed against her lower abdomen and it left her skin feeling hot. His lips were warm and needy, full of desire and possession, and the kunoichi found herself not minding one bit. In fact, she returned it wholeheartedly. Was it wrong to yearn for someone that was practically less than half her age? Sakura had screwed with the reality of this time and she was still screwing with it, she figured that was the only reason why this action was taking place, why she was kissing the youngest Uchiha so passionately, yet she couldn't bring herself to care.

That was when she realized; the kunoichi had wanted this to happen ever since she first laid eyes on the Uchiha. She knew that she wanted it in her past, but ever since he had betrayed Konoha, Sakura never thought about _actually_ kissing Sasuke but now that she had, and was, she didn't want it to end. So when someone made themselves known in the doorway by clearing their throat and the duo had to break apart to look at the visitor, Sakura didn't try to hide the fact that she was thoroughly upset.

Both genin glared at the clear smirk that was covered up by their sensei's mask. Though they had ended the kiss, they didn't release the hold that they had on each other, which seemed to amuse the copy ninja more as he let out a soft chuckle.

"I'm glad to see that you two were so worried about your sensei."

Sakura's glare eased up a bit and she let a small smirk graze her features as Kakashi continued, "Naruto wants to go to Ichiraku's."

There was an audible sigh behind the pinkette and she looked to see Sasuke giving their sensei an exhausted look before he let go of his hold on her, Sakura letting go of him in the process as well. There was another chuckle from their sensei that had Sakura grinning. Jade orbs looked back up into onyx to see the male looking down at her. A pink eyebrow rose expectantly at him, making Sasuke let out another sigh and rub the back of his neck with his palm.

"You're going to make me go either way." he mumbled knowingly.

Sakura smiled brightly up at him before turning away and heading toward the door where the pinkette could practically see the smirk on Kakashi's face behind his mask. Sasuke watched the kunoichi walk out the door and then turned his attention up to the copy ninja, frowning disapprovingly.

Kakashi held up his hands in a defensive manner as he let out another chuckle. "I won't tell."

The Uchiha sighed and began to walk toward the doorway, preparing himself for all the stories that Naruto would no doubt be telling them about what he did while he was unconscious.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

After the group ate, they had went to the training grounds to work on their techniques. It was only when the four had sat down to take a break after two hours of training that the easy mood shifted into something tense.

Sasuke watched the pinkette carefully as she laid sprawled out on the grass next to Naruto. Kakashi was a few feet away, reading his book and minding his business. The other two genin talked about the casual things, unimportant things just to pass the time. The Uchiha thought back to all the times that Sakura had gotten hurt, how she had come so close to dying, how many times she ended up in some sort of bed. He knew that she would continue to get hurt and she would always bounce back as if nothing had happened. The dark haired male knew that things were just going to get harder and one of these days she would be gone for good. He couldn't have that. He didn't want her getting hurt or leaving them forever. The life she was living was dangerous and full of risks, anything could happen to her.

And with those thoughts in mind, that was what caused him to break the easy going mood between the team. "Sakura."

The pinkette and blonde paused their conversation to look up at the frowning Uchiha in front of them. He was sitting down but since they were lying down, they still had to look up to meet his gaze.

"What is it, Sasuke?" she asked curiously.

The tension seemed to build between them as the silence grew, the male not answering for long moments until finally, he stated in a calm voice what was on his mind. "You should give up being a shinobi."

Jade and blue orbs widened in complete shock, both of the genin's faces falling as they stared at the dark haired male before them. Even Kakashi adverted his attention from his book to look at the stoic male that just happened to look completely serious.

"Wh-what are you saying, Teme?" Naruto questioned, sitting up to properly look at his teammate.

Sasuke didn't bother to answer the blonde or look at him, his full attention on the kunoichi as her shocked expression turned stoic and she sat up. They stared at each other for what felt like minutes when it was only seconds.

"Are you saying I'm too weak to be apart of this team?" she asked calmly, though on the inside she was silently frustrated. What right did he have to say that she should give up on being a ninja? To give up that would be the same thing as giving up on her mission, to give up on Konoha. She wouldn't do it.

"You are always getting hurt and getting in the way." he replied, though it came out a bit harsher sounding than what he meant to. She wasn't weak, everyone could see that and yet. . .

The kunoichi's eyebrow twitched as she stood up and glared down at the stoic male, fighting the urge to storm off before she did something she would regret or to knock the shit out of him for practically accusing her of being weak.

"I'll prove myself to be your equal." she settled on, making the male's eyes widen for a moment. The kunoichi didn't like the thought of fighting the Uchiha but she wouldn't have him looking down on her. First it was 'you're still stronger' then to 'you're getting in the way'. Come on, what the hell?

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her but stood up nonetheless. Obviously she didn't see the meaning behind his words but that apparently didn't matter at the moment as she glared at him. Why was she reacting this way? The dark haired male could see the raging anger behind her jade orbs though she did well to hide it.

Naruto stood up to stand beside them, placing his hands on their shoulders to keep them from fighting each other. "Come on you guys. Don't do this." he said, worry clear in his voice.

The two ignored the blonde's words as they continued to stare at each other. "Use whatever you want against me. I guarantee I'll be able to keep up with you without a problem." she said, her tone and gaze firm. Naruto protested to her comment but she shrugged off the hold he had on her arm.

Sasuke nodded his head. He could live with that. If Sakura could keep up with him without a problem at all then he would lay off of her giving up on being a shinobi, at least for a little while. He knew that she was still stronger than him, but sometimes it didn't seem like it. Sometimes her playful attitude and disregard for her safety got under his skin and threw that fact right out the window.

Sakura adverted her gaze from the stoic male and walked passed him to go further into the training field, Sasuke following silently behind her. Naruto's face fell at their seemingly sudden rivalry. Wide, blue eyes turned back to look down at his still sitting sensei. Kakashi looked up to meet Naruto's concerned gaze.

"Don't worry, Naruto." the copy ninja said reassuringly. "Its not as bad as it seems. Sasuke just needs reassurance that Sakura can take care of herself."

"So. . . you mean that Teme's worried about her?" Naruto asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion.

"Exactly." Kakashi replied, turning his attention back to the duo getting farther away from them.

Soon enough, the two stopped and stood yards away from each other, both looking into the other's eyes. Both waited for who would make the first move as the wind blew eerily through the field, sending pink and dark locks to follow in it's path. Suddenly, jade orbs caught the slightest movement of Sasuke's hand and immediately knew that he was about to ready a kunai. Her hand reached into her own weapons pouch and pulled out her own kunai, throwing it and knocking the one in the Uchiha's hand out of his grasp.

Onyx eyes narrowed at her but she was unfazed by him as she straightened her pose comfortably. Sasuke watched carefully as the pinkette looked back at him calmly. Knowing that she wouldn't do anything while he did so, he closed his eyes and reopened them with his Sharingan activated.

Sakura widened her eyes to see the familiar orbs, still with it's two commas, but then her expression turned into a playful smirk. "Taking this seriously, huh?"

He matched her smirk with one of her own before nodding, "Yeah." The tension between the two of them lessened drastically with those two sentences. Sakura still wasn't sure what the male's reasons were for what he said, but she knew that his words weren't as cold as she first thought.

"Good." the kunoichi replied, going into a battle stance, glad that he wasn't planning on holding back while testing her. The next moment, the ground crumbled and shattered between them, making Sasuke have to retreat back a good bit as dust and dirt flew up around the area. Sakura almost instantly appeared before him, a grin on her features as she threw a kick at his side.

The Uchiha gritted his teeth and made a low hiss when he brought his arm up to block the hit, the bone and muscles in his arm protesting at the pain. Sakura didn't put enough effort into the attack to break anything but the male would no doubt have a nasty bruise there in a few hours. A hand gripped her arm but the kunoichi ignored it, not that it would do him much good anyway. Twisting her body around, she aimed another kick at his other side.

Sasuke found that he had trouble keeping up with her even with his Sharingan. As she continued to attack him and he continued to block her advances, he noticed that she didn't seem to be using any sort of technique with him, just randomly throwing kicks and punches here and there. It was like she understood exactly how his Sharingan worked and exactly how to screw with it so he couldn't read her movements. She would pretend to hit him in the side with a punch and then sweep down at the last second to swipe under his legs. Aside from her random movements, her speed was absolutely incredible.

Somehow breaking apart from her before she could land a hit on his arm, he back flipped away and as soon as his feet touched the ground, he did a fire style jutsu. Flames poured from his mouth aimed at the pinkette. The Uchiha fully expected for her to jump out of the way of the attack, but his eyes widened as she just stood calmly in the line of fire.

"Sakura!" he heard Naruto yell from off in the distance as the fireball grew closer to the kunoichi. _What the hell was she doing?! Why wasn't she moving out of the way?_

Sakura let out a sigh and at the last moment, her hands flew up and her chakra poured into her palms, spreading out quickly to create a barrier around her body.

"_Sakura!_" her teammates yelled as the flame engulfed around her form, seemingly eating her alive. Then after a few, dreadful seconds, the flame dispersed and the pink haired kunoichi stood calmly where she had been moments ago, the attack not leaving a single scratch on her.

Everyone looked at her, shocked as she grinned at the Uchiha. "That all you got?" she asked teasingly before her two teammates let out a sigh of relief.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sasuke let out short, heavy pants as he leaned up against a tree that was closest to the ruined battle field that he and Sakura had practically destroyed not too long ago. The battle ended about fifteen minutes ago and the others had already left while he decided to stay behind. Though he didn't have any broken bones, scratches and bruises adorned his skin all over the place. His clothes were torn and his body was covered with sweat, stinging his flesh wounds.

What he had seen from Sakura during that four hour battle had surprised him greatly. It was like she was a totally different person, a person that yearned to be acknowledged and to be accepted. Though he could sense it in the way she fought against him, she mainly wanted _him_ to accept her. There was a deeper message in the way that she threw her punches and kicks that he couldn't even begin to understand, but he understood that she wanted his approval. And he would be lying if he said that he didn't approve of her skills. She left him practically breathless while she walked away barely sweating.

Suddenly, Sasuke looked up to meet the smiling face of his sensei, causing the Uchiha to narrow his eyes. "Finally satisfied?" he asked before sitting down cross-legged on the ground.

"Hn." the stoic, dark haired male replied.

Kakashi chuckled under his breath. "You could have just told her that you worried about her well-being."

Sasuke frowned as he focused on evening out his breathing, it was slowly but surely returning back to normal. "So you knew."

"Of course." the copy ninja replied, still looking over at his student with a smile covered by his mask. Then, his expression turned serious, causing the younger male to lift an eyebrow in curiosity at the sudden shift of his sensei's mood. "I'm sure you realize that she went easy on you."

Sasuke frowned deeply and began to breathe more evenly, more quietly, as Kakashi continued, "I hope you realize that she might act weak and get hurt is mainly for you and Naruto."

Dark eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Why would she do that?"

"To protect you two's ego." the copy ninja replied and then let out a sigh as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "I hate to admit it but Sakura has shown signs that she might be stronger than me."

The Uchiha's eyes widened for a moment until giving the silver haired man a skeptical look. "When exactly?"

Kakashi placed his hand back into his lap as he explained calmly, "First off, when she healed Haku and Zabuza. She participated in the battle and still managed to heal those two and you almost completely. Then when she fought against Gaara, her lung had almost been punctured and she lost most of her blood." the copy ninja continued calmly, "There were also moments that happened when you weren't there to witness them."

"Alright, I get it." the Uchiha grumbled, turning his attention away from his sensei to narrow his eyes at the ground. The sun was slowly dying down and the land was beginning to darken, stars slowly starting to show in the already sleeping portions of the sky. He was fully aware that Sakura hadn't used her full strength against him and that she could take care of herself, much to his relief and disappointment at the same time. It was also a bit embarrassing that he practically got his ass kicked by his female teammate, but he didn't dwell on it.

"Good." Kakashi stated, though he didn't think the young male didn't fully get it. He had only just named the things that included Sakura using her healing jutsu, which wasn't an easy task, especially for a genin. Then there was what he had heard from Naruto when he was being healed about what Sakura had done when the Akatsuki were after the blonde. He had ranted about how strong and brave she was while trying to protect Sasuke, about how she had 'tore those guys a new one!'. The copy ninja was almost positive that the Uchiha wasn't even aware about what Sakura had done.

Sasuke didn't say anything to his sensei, neither did the copy ninja say anything to his student. After awhile with both of them not speaking, Kakashi left the Uchiha to his thoughts. Soon, the whole sky was dark with night and clouds, the beginnings of rain starting to drizzle down onto the grateful earth. He could feel her behind the tree he was leaning against though she made no move to make herself known. Sasuke figured that she knew he was aware of her presence however. He was sure that if she didn't want to be found then she wouldn't be.

"Why are you hiding, Sakura?" he asked into the air and wasn't surprised when the pink haired kunoichi walked out to stand next to him. He didn't bother to look away from the sky to gaze over at her as she sat down and made herself comfortable. Silence fell between them for a few moments, the rain getting harder as it poured down calmly.

"You were worried about me." she whispered mainly to herself.

"Hn." he replied while closing his eyes.

Sakura thought about the words her teammate and sensei shared. Sasuke was worried about her well-being, that was why he wanted her to give up on being a shinobi. That was his way of wanting to protect her, to keep her from getting hurt.

"Why do you want to protect me, Sasuke?" she asked quietly, staring up into the crying sky, the leaves from the branches above them covering their bodies from getting wet.

"It doesn't matter." he replied.

Sakura didn't say anything for awhile, settling on listening to the sound of the rain. It was calming. The tenseness she had felt earlier immediately disappeared, her body calming down and resting at ease as she slumped her shoulders and relaxed in her sitting position. "It matters to me." she whispered.

Jade orbs looked over to see onyx staring back at her stoically, his facial expression giving nothing away to what his inner thoughts were. Letting out a sigh, the pinkette moved closer to the male and began to heal the minor wounds he had. Sasuke watched silently as she did so, his eyes never leaving hers as she concentrated on healing the injuries she had inflicted on him earlier.

Could he tell her the reason why he wanted to protect her? Was the whole situation even fair? They were trying to keep each other safe, yet he didn't want her protection. On another note, he had many reasons why he didn't want her hurt. She was one of his best friends. She was more or less the anchor to his sanity at some points in time, especially right after the massacre happened. But she couldn't know that he depended on her so much. He didn't even like the fact that that was the case, he didn't want to depend on her, yet he had unintentionally looked toward her for support.

Sakura looked deeply into glazed over orbs as Sasuke stared up into the raining sky. She had finished healing all of his wounds moments ago but he seemed to be too deep into thought that he didn't notice. Maybe it was best to leave him be for awhile so he could think without interruption. The kunoichi let out a sigh and tried to stand up but was stopped when a hand gripped her wrist and pulled her forward. Sakura's eyes widened when she fell into a pair of arms that instantly wrapped around her form. A head of dark hair nestled itself into her shoulder as the hold around her tightened. Sakura's mouth hung open lightly in surprise and her heartbeat sped up. Honestly, she didn't think she could ever get used to the Uchiha making any sort of contact with her, much less embracing.

"Stay." he whispered into her ear. It was only one word, a simple word, yet it left her body immobile. The kunoichi's body slumped into the hold, her head falling onto the shoulder before her and she didn't protest when the Uchiha pulled her body up closer so that she was straddling his waist. Even with the position that their bodies were in seemed so suggestive, those sort of things didn't even dare to cross their minds.

What was he going to do? Sasuke wasn't sure what was wrong with him but it worried him. He wasn't sure if he should really care for someone so deeply. He trusted her with so much of him. But the last person he had cared for and trusted so greatly betrayed him and their entire family. Sasuke knew that the pink haired female in his arms wouldn't harm him in anyway like the way his brother did, but it was hard to keep up that trust. What if she ended up betraying him in some way? What if she disregarded his trust and hurt him? No, he didn't want to believe that Sakura would do something like that. Sasuke didn't believe she was like his brother, that she was like almost everybody else in the world that would only do things for self-gain.

"Its alright, Sasuke." Sakura whispered reassuringly in his ear, making him want to let out an exhausted sigh. It always seemed that she knew when he needed support, when something was upsetting him. Almost instinctively, his grip on her tightened. Yes, he could trust her. He would trust her. Though he didn't fully understand what those words implied, he didn't exactly care that he was ignorant to them, fully content with the situation he was in at that moment.

~~_SCENE CHANGE_~~

"_You're still too weak, Sasuke." Those were the words that were whispered into his ear when his body slammed into the wall._

"_Welcome back, Sasuke." A soft voice called out to him, though it was farther away._

"_Grow your hatred so that one day you can get your revenge." Those were the words that were said to him before his world had spiraled into a world of darkness and death. Those were the words of the person that had destroyed everything important to him. The words of the person who had destroyed his home._

"_Welcome home, Sasuke." There it was again. That soft voice. Where was it coming from? Home? What did it mean? The young male looked around but he couldn't find who it belonged to. It sounded so familiar yet it was so distant. Fog clouded the whole area. He was the only one there, no one else in sight, no other living organism making an appearance or sound, just him. It was just him. Yet, where were those voices coming from?_

"_Harbor your hate, Sasuke." Itachi? Where was he? Looking around, the young male couldn't see him. The oldest Uchiha was nowhere in sight._

"_Its alright, Sasuke." There! It was right next to him. That voice. That voice that sounded so calm and understanding. It had never had an ounce of pity or disdain, just care, concern, and honesty. Where had he heard it before?_

"_Use your hate to exact your revenge one day." The male ignored the voice and continued to search around for the owner of the other. For the owner of the voice that always seemed to calm him down._

_Suddenly, the scenery shifted drastically. He was back at the compound, his family's bodies on the ground in front of him. Onyx eyes widened as he took a step back, only to bump into the wall behind him. Blood. There was blood everywhere. His mother and father. . . Hands shot up to cover his eyes from the horrendous scene. He didn't want to look. He didn't want to see his dead parents and he didn't want to see his brother standing behind them, looking down at him with cold eyes._

"_You're too weak." his brother taunted. The young male gritted his teeth and slumped down to the ground, sliding down the wall behind him that no doubt had blood on it._

"_Go away." he whispered into the dark room, his voice weak and strangled from the pain in his heart. His chest contrasted and his breathing grew heavy. "Go away." he said, this time weaker than the last. His eyes remained tightly closed as he brought his hands up to grip the roots of his hair. Hot, salty tears sprung up in his eyes. He didn't want to be there. He just wanted to leave. To not be reminded of what happened. It was too painful. He just wanted to leave everything behind. . ._

"_Don't go."_

_Sakura? Where was she? It sounded like she was in front of him, but he didn't want to look up. He couldn't look up. He would only see the dead bodies of his parents if he looked up. Suddenly, a green light appeared behind his closed eyelids and his raging head began to calm, his body slowly slumping down in ease. The male took a great chance fluttering an onyx orb open but what he was met with had both of his eyes widening and his face falling._

"_Sakura?"_

"_That's right." she whispered reassuringly._

_He wasn't in the compound anymore. In fact, he had no idea where he was but he didn't care. "Sakura." he whispered, leaning into her warm touch that she had on his cheeks before closing his eyes again._

"Sakura." he whispered, leaning into her warm touch that she had on his cheeks, making the kunoichi smile. A single tear ran from his closed eyes and slipped down his cheek and onto her glowing hand. The kunoichi's thumb swiped at the warm liquid and then moved her hands up to wrap comfortably around his head, still applying her healing chakra to his racing mind.

She had woken up from her deep slumber from the male under her thrashing around, in the process of having a nightmare. It didn't surprise her really, she expected him to have nightmares after everything with his brother, though she would be there to help his raging mind whenever she could. The only downside of that being was that she knew Sasuke wouldn't willingly tell her when he needed help or reassuring. It had completely shocked her that he would pull her into an embrace when he needed it, though it did please her. The contrast between this male and the one she used to know was becoming greater with each passing day and she vaguely wondered how much more he would open up to her.

~~:)~~

Please review. :)


	11. Making Contracts

Thank you to those of you who have reviewed and I thank you greatly for your patience. Along with the fact that I had to spend most of my time getting ready to move to a different place, there was Christmas. So I didn't have a lot of time to work on my stories. Thank you again to my reviewers, I really appreciate it :) and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

This chapter will begin right where the last one left off and I will begin their mission to the Land of Snow in this chapter as well. Enjoy :)

Chapter 11: Making Contracts

Dark eyes slowly fluttered open and his ears adjusted to the noises around him. The sound of soft rain was still active and the male glanced around to see that the morning clouds were still crying a bit. Though it was different, very unlike the harsh rain that normally accompanied him, this rain was calming and gentle. Thinking of the two words that described a certain female, Sasuke looked around for the kunoichi, only for his gaze to lower down when there was movement in his lap. Sakura was fast asleep on the ground with her head in his lap, resting peacefully and letting out quiet, even breathes.

The Uchiha's gaze softened as he lifted up a hand from his side to run it through the kunoichi's pink locks. Images of the dream he had the night before flashed through his mind and he couldn't stop a frown from crossing his features. He had felt so alone at first, so scared, and Itachi had been there, taunting him, reminding him that he was always in his older brother's shadow, that he was weak.

He was so ready to just disappear, to just end the pain and loneliness. His parents were gone, everyone was gone, and yet there was still someone there, asking him not to go. They needed him to stay, to not go away. They needed him. No, _she_ needed him.

"Sakura." he whispered quietly, gazing down at the petite female's face, his heart fluttering softly in contentment.

He thought she was asleep but for some reason, it didn't surprise him when she answered back by letting out a small hum of acknowledgment.

Sasuke continued to watch her as she laid perfectly still with her eyes remaining closed. She waited patiently for him to say what was on his mind, a trait that he valued greatly with her. She was always patient with him, never forcing him to say what was on his mind, just waiting and listening.

"Am I weak?" the quiet words came out before he could stop them, making themselves known to the female in his lap of their own accord. Though they seemed to hold a sense of vulnerability, the Uchiha couldn't bring himself to care. At least not in front of the pink haired female. His comrade. His best friend.

It was with those words that had Sakura opening her eyes to look up at him, her gaze calm as she took in his frowning features looking down at her. Was he remembering something from his dream? Is this how he felt around her? Or was he remembering something that happened with Itachi?

"No." she stated gently yet firmly and watched as dark eyebrows furrowed at her response. The pinkette didn't let his unbelieving gaze stop her though as she continued in a knowing tone, "You are a lot of things, Sasuke; cocky, calm, arrogant, intelligent, observant, and a lot more." Sakura watched as his face fell into a stoic expression as he listened to her and she continued without hesitation, "You are a lot things, but 'weak' was never one of them."

Sasuke barely registered the fact that his hand was still playing with pink tresses as he continued to gaze down into jade orbs. "How can you say that so confidently?" he asked calmly. The dark haired male didn't miss the negative words she had thrown in there while describing him, though he figured that was her way of showing her honesty. Her words were sincere, that was what she thought of him and yet, he couldn't bring himself to care about being called 'arrogant' or 'cocky'.

"Because its true." the kunoichi replied without breaking eye contact with the dark haired male. "Sasuke." she sighed and reached up to grasp the hand running through her hair. Bringing it down to lay on her stomach, she cupped his hand inside her palm and held it. "You're one of the strongest people I know."

Sasuke didn't respond, not quite sure on what to say, as he watched the kunoichi close her eyes and frown. "There is more than psychical ability that makes a person strong, Sasuke." she stated gently, making his face light up a small amount. "Now stop degrading yourself. Its unbecoming of you."

Since the pink haired female's eyes were closed, she wasn't rewarded the small smile that was directed towards her. It was a genuine smile that he could only show to her, it was a smile reserved only for her. The Uchiha's smile didn't leave as he twisted his wrist around to hold her hand and lace his fingers through hers.

"Shouldn't you be getting home?" he asked calmly, though on the inside he didn't exactly want her to leave. Her parents were probably worried about her since she was out all night.

Sakura grunted in response but moved to stand up nonetheless, Sasuke letting go of her hand while she did so. He watched silently as she stood up and stretched, mewling as her back popped. The kunoichi let out a sigh as she looked over to where the sun began to rise over the tree covered horizon, the sight making her smile warmly and her gaze to soften.

"Have sunrises always been this beautiful?" she asked softly though she didn't really expect a response and wasn't surprised when she didn't get one. Though unbeknownst to her, the dark haired male's eyes weren't on the way the rising sun lit up the sky with red and purple hues, but rather, they were on her.

Sakura turned to look back down at the Uchiha watching her, a smile still on her face. "Come on, lets go so we can eat and Naruto can pester you about where I've been." The pinkette didn't even try to stop a laugh when the Uchiha let out an already annoyed sigh.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Come in!"

Sakura opened the doors to her Hokage's office, the ceremony only taking place the day before where Tsunade was officially made Kage of the Hidden Leaf Village. The kunoichi shut the door behind her and walked to stand in the center of the room, spotting Shizune standing beside the older woman's desk with her trusty pig in her arms. Jade orbs looked seriously in front of her and met the eyes of the blonde woman.

"You're Sakura, right? I've heard a lot about you from the brat and your sensei."

The pinkette nodded her head and bowed respectively before her Shishou before righting herself, her features still portraying how serious she was about this. The blonde woman nodded her head and waved her hand over her desk to show off the huge stack of paperwork she had on the corner of her maroon desk.

"Try to make this quick. I have a lot of paperwork to do."

"I'm afraid that will have to wait. I have more important things to discuss with you."

Tsunade furrowed her eyebrows at the pinkette as she reached into a pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. Chestnut eyes followed as Sakura placed it on her desk. It was a note, neatly folded into a perfect square and it looked like it was quite old, as if it were in that same position for years, just collecting dust in a drawer somewhere.

"What is this?" she asked while picking it up to inspect it further. Tsunade ignored the woman beside her as Shizune leaned in to look at the note as well.

"It is note that only you will be able to open. Apply your chakra to it and it should unfold." Sakura replied calmly. Not soon after, Tsunade hovered a glowing hand over the piece of paper and it unfolded, the contents that were written looking as though it had been wrote only the day before. When the note opened all the way, multiple sets of pictures fell onto the desk, along with another note, but the older woman didn't pay that much mind just yet. Jade orbs glanced down to see that the pictures consisted of every single member of the Akatsuki.

Tsunade ignored the photos and decided to look over the writing on the note, noting that it was exactly like her own hand writing. Many moments passed and soon, both Tsunade and Shizune had wide eyes as their faces fell in complete shock and bewilderment. Placing the note on the table after she was finished with it, Tsunade looked on seriously as she placed her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her folded hands.

"This note was apparently written by me and states that you are from thirteen years in the future." she stated, watching the pink haired kunoichi carefully. "It also said that if I required proof then I should ask you personal questions that only those close to me would know."

Sakura nodded her head. "Should I begin?"

"Go ahead."

The kunoichi took in a big inhale of breath to prepare herself, "With all due respect, of course." she began and waited for the blonde's nod of affirmation before she continued, "You have a bad habit of gambling and losing, you're a lush, you're the best medic in Konoha at this moment, you're the granddaughter of the first Hokage, the third Hokage was your sensei, Orochimaru and Jiraiya were your teammates, you have a foul temper, and though you always denied Jiraiya's attempts of dating him, you actually had a secret crush on him during your genin days."

Tsunade and Shizune gaped at the pink haired female as she calmly continued, "You have a sweet tooth and always keep a spare bottle of sake in your desk that took forever for Shizune and I to find. It soon became your favorite hiding place and I wouldn't be surprised if you have a bottle in there right now."

The blonde Hokage's eyebrow twitched uncomfortably. "And where would this 'favorite hiding place' be?"

A small smirk took over Sakura's face as she pointed to the desk's leg that was closest to the blonde and to her left. "There's a small compartment in that leg where you push in the wood. Put a bit of pressure on it and it'll open up."

Tsunade looked on in shock as Shizune bent over and searched around the wooden leg until a part of it pressed further in and slid down. True to Sakura's word, there was a small compartment with a full bottle of sake in it. The dark haired female frowned up at her Hokage before taking out the bottle and holding it down by her side.

The Hokage frowned at the scowl she received from the pig lover but then turned back to look at the photos on her desk. She reached up and spread them out, looking over all of the members in the black cloaks. "These are all of the members of the Akatsuki?"

"Yes." Sakura nodded. "Though I would like Kakashi-sensei to be here when we discuss it."

"Very well. Shizune, go fetch the copy ninja."

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"You wished to speak with me, Lady Tsunade?"

"Yes, we need to discuss this matter." the blonde replied, gesturing to the ten photos on her desk.

Kakashi stepped in front of the next, leaning over to get a better look at the photos. "So I take it that you believe Sakura?"

Tsunade let out a nervous cough into her hand, remembering everything the pink haired kunoichi had said that she knew about her. "Yes, well, on to more important matters."

Sakura glanced over to the side to see the copy nin wearing a small smirk under his mask before turning serious. The kunoichi brought back her attention to the blonde as she spoke up seriously. "How much do you know about them, Sakura?"

"Names, abilities, personalities, and the like. Do you want me to begin?"

The blonde woman nodded and that was permission enough for Sakura to begin. Pointing her finger to the first person on her right, she looked down at the male that had blue skin and a huge sword strapped to his back. "This is Kisame Hoshigaki, a former Wave shinobi. He generally uses his favored sword, Samehada, and can absorb one's chakra. He enjoys a fight but can be deceptive."

The pinkette pulled back her hand and crossed her arms over her stomach as she looked up to meet the Hokage's eyes. "Since the Akatsuki are made of groups of two, everyone had a specific partner that usually fits into the other's personality. Like Kakashi and I have already seen, Kisame's partner is Itachi Uchiha. I'll go over the Wave ninja's information more later to go over the basics with the others, if that is alright with you, of course."

Tsunade nodded and looked down to the next picture that Sakura pointed to; a picture of a redhead sat next to Kisame's and that was the one that the pinkette started to explain next. "Sasori of the Red Sand. He is a puppet master originally from Suna. Kakashi-sensei knows who I'm talking about when I say that Konkuro from the chuunin exams, his puppet 'Crow' was created by Sasori. He will also use the third Kazekage's body as a puppet against us in a battle two and a half years from now."

Everyone's eyes widened at her comment but she dismissed it and continued in a calm tone. "He is rather impatient and often gets into arguments with his partner Deidara about what true art is. Personally, they're both a pain in the ass."

Sakura then pointed to the photo next to the redhead which just happened to be the blonde that she was previously complaining about. "This is Deidara, a ninja from Iwagakure. Because of his nature of causing explosions, Itachi and Kisame were told to recruit him after Orochimaru left the organization. Depending on what you say to him, he can have a short temper and usually ends his sentences with 'yeah' or 'un'. He makes his explosions by using clay and the mouths that he has on his hands."

"Interesting." spoke the copy ninja next to her, putting his hand to his chin in thought. "You remembered everything about all of these members?"

Sakura nodded her head in return. "When they're a future threat to the whole world, naturally."

Tsunade picked up her head from looking at the picture of the blonde to meet jade orbs. "The world? Are you saying that a war's going to break out?"

"I'll explain everything all in due time, Tsunade-shishou." the pink haired kunoichi replied. The Hokage raised an eyebrow at her but nodded nonetheless.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

The meeting had lasted for almost two hours with Sakura going over every single person, not missing a single detail about every member's abilities and traits. Everyone had looked at her like she was crazy when she told them about Hidan having immortality because of his religion and that was when Tsunade decided she needed a drink to help her keep up with all of the information she was receiving. The pinkette had went over details about all of the battles that they fought and she didn't fail to add in that Tobi was actually Obito posing as Madara, which had Kakashi's eyes widening in utter shock.

After Sakura had gotten in all the information about the Akatsuki over with, Tsunade presented them with a mission to get started on tomorrow; they were to protect Princess Koyuki, the heiress of the Snow Country. So the two left the Hokage's office after being dismissed and then set out to find the two male genin of Team Seven. They walked silently down the streets for a few moments, searching for either of the duo.

"You didn't tell the Hokage about Sasuke." Kakashi spoke up, shoving one hand into his pocket and pulling out his trusty copy of Icha Icha Paradise with the other to indulge himself in the words.

The pink haired kunoichi nodded her head, looking around at the people walking down the street. "Shishou took in a lot today, I don't want to take it overboard by telling her that there's a possibility that one of the best genin in the village is going to betray us."

Silence fell between them again and they soon were met with the sight of Naruto and Sasuke sitting on stools at Ichiraku's, making a smile cross the kunoichi's lips. "Do you think he'll leave us, sensei?"

Kakashi looked over his book to see that the two male's had felt them approaching and looked back at them. Naruto grinned broadly and waved at them but what the copy nin paid more attention to was the way the Uchiha's eyes landed on Sakura and the way his lips tilted into a small smile as he looked at her.

"No, I don't think he will." he replied, making the pinkette's smile brighter as she waved to her two teammates and set out into a short run to stand next to them.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"I can't wait to see this movie!" the blonde of the trio said excitedly, fist pumping into the air to emphasize his point. "I couldn't get any sleep last night because I was so excited."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at the male skeptically. From what she had heard while trying to sleep last night, the blonde had practically snored the house out. The kunoichi yawned into her palm and then began to choke on air with the blonde's next words, "Oh and Sakura, if you find any stains on the couch, it was Kyoun."

The pink haired female gave the blonde an incredulous look while Sasuke sighed. "Do I even want to know?" she asked skeptically and the blonde shook his head at her as they continued to walk toward the theater. Turning a disgusted frown to the road ahead of her, she grumbled disapprovingly, "Ugh, that's so gross."

Naruto let out a bark of laughter while the Uchiha softly chuckled, both amused by her whiny pout. She would be hearing a lot of complaining from her mother when she got home, that was for sure. Soon, the theater doors came into view and jade and onyx orbs watched as a head of blonde hair darted off to pester the person up front about getting in and that he had to watch the movie.

Sakura let a small smile cross her lips as the man frowned down at the over-energetic blonde and told him that he needed to a buy ticket first. The kunoichi broke out into an easy run to catch up with her blonde best friend, leaving the stoic male behind to catch up to them at his own pace. It didn't take long at all for them to get their tickets and make their way into the theater, Naruto and Sakura jumping up to the ceiling as soon as they stepped into the room.

Letting out a sigh, Sasuke did the same and applied chakra to his feet, hanging upside down on the ceiling. A dark eyebrow rose, seeing that his two teammates had taken it upon themselves to look foolish as they crawled on the surface to get closer to the huge screen instead of walking like a normal person.

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows as she playfully nudged the blonde in his side with her elbow, snickering when he complained that she was going to make him lose balance and fall. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a head of dark hair standing next to her. Jade orbs looked up to see Sasuke looking down at her and giving her a quizzical look, no doubt still having suspicions about her level of maturity. The kunoichi chuckled and gave him a sheepish smile before the movie began. After all, why should she waste her time acting adult-like when she was 'technically' twelve, almost thirteen?

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"Ugh! It sucks that we didn't get to see the ending!" the blonde grumbled loudly while kicking the ground, a deep frown on his lips.

Sakura snickered as she sat down on the ground, her legs crossed with her hands grabbing her feet, rocking gently back and forth. "You shouldn't have caused such a ruckus then we wouldn't have gotten caught."

Naruto turned around and scowled down at her, pointing his finger at her accusingly. "You were the one that started the whole food fight!"

Things went a little differently than the last time Sakura had seen that movie, though she wasn't exactly the one that had started it. When the audience began tossing food at them because of Naruto, the kunoichi had gotten annoyed and decided to throw the produce back at the crowd, which had caused an even bigger uproar. Naruto had gotten the worse of the event, getting hit with numerous types of food. The pinkette had at first tried to find shelter behind her stoic teammate, which ended up with him getting hit with some sort of drink and him taking his revenge out on her, which happened to be shoving chocolate in her face when she wasn't paying attention. All around, Sakura had been amused. The other two. . . not so much.

"Hn." the dark haired male grumbled, pulling at his now sticky, blue shirt.

The pinkette continued to rock back and forth, her good mood not dissipating with their foul disapproval of her actions. "Screw you guys. I had fun." she laughed.

Naruto continued to scowl at her as he shook his head, chip crumbs falling from his blonde locks, making Sakura's laughter continue. Without any warning, she suddenly stood up and walked over to the Uchiha sitting on the pile of large pipes next to them. The kunoichi stopped in front of him with a smile on her features and chocolate still smeared on her cheek. Sasuke arched an eyebrow, already knowing that she was up to no good.

"Why do you think Kakashi-sensei had us watch this movie?" she asked no in particular.

Sasuke continued to watch the female in front of him warily while Naruto answered her, "Maybe its for that new mission he was supposed to be telling us about today?"

"Probably." she replied before giving the dark haired male in front of her a sly smirk. The Uchiha looked taken aback for a moment and tried to pull back when she wiped at her cheek, but it was too late. A skillful finger swiped across his face, smearing chocolate over his smooth cheek and nose. Onyx eyes narrowed as he frowned down at the kunoichi, her chuckling and their blonde teammate laughing loudly.

"So annoying." he grumbled while wiping away the offending, sweet treat from his face with the back of his hand. One of his eyes were closed as he tried to get rid of it, reminding the pink haired female of a cat trying to clean itself, the thought only making her laugh further. His one opened eye looked at her and his frown deepened. Sakura stuck her tongue out at him playfully before turning to face a grinning Naruto.

At that moment, loud footsteps could be heard getting closer to the group, but they weren't steps that belonged to a human. The trio looked to see a white horse jumping over the large, wooden fence behind them, a beautiful woman riding on it and her dark hair flying in the wind behind her. After her horse hit the ground, she took off, multiple people jumping over the fence and following after her on their own horses.

The team of genin followed after the woman immediately, Naruto yelling after her and for the others to stop chasing her. Along the way, Sakura had transformed into the woman to take her place, the group of men successfully still following her. She rode down alleyways, glided through streets, and jumped down stairs. It was only when she was jumping down a pair of stairs when oil was splayed across the concrete, causing the horse to lose balance and fall. At the last moment, the pinkette kicked off of the horse and flipped through the air, landing gracefully on the ground before changing back. The men continued to charge after her however, shouting.

"Imposter!"

"She's hiding the Princess!"

"Get her!"

The men jumped off of their horses and charged at her, her body being covered from head to toe with men in armor. Sakura gritted her teeth and punched the ground in annoyance, the men losing their balance and collapsing onto the broken earth, groaning in pain. The kunoichi narrowed her eyes at the men around before grumbling disapprovingly, "Amateurs."

Jade orbs looked up to see the Uchiha standing on the back of a horse with a man falling to the ground. Their next client. Sakura had to suppress a laugh. She had fully known who these people were and yet she had went up against them anyway. Though she mainly did it because she had been bored. Walking over to the brown horse that Sasuke still stood on, she stopped in front of it and gently raked her hand over it's head.

"You're so pretty." the pinkette said lovingly, the horse letting out a snort in reply and making a grin cross Sakura's features.

Sasuke looked down at the female for a moment before looking behind her to the twitching men laying around in the small crater she had made. A smirk of amusement crossed his lips at the sight. "So what do we do with them now?" he asked casually like the situation they were in was an everyday thing.

The pinkette shrugged lazily, still running her hands over the horse's head and hair. "They shouldn't be getting up anytime soon."

"Hn." the Uchiha replied. Onyx eyes watched as the pinkette walked closer to him and jumped up onto the mammal, throwing her leg over the side so that she straddled it's back. "You like horses?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at the way she praised the animal with affections.

Sakura tilted her head to look back at the stoic male, giving him a blank look. "You don't like them?"

The dark haired male let out a sigh before sitting down, putting his back to the female's and leaning back comfortably. The pinkette let a soft smile cross her lips and rested her head back on a broad shoulder, looking up at the bright sky.

"I wonder where the dobe went." Sasuke said quietly. They had lost track of him awhile back, him choosing to chase after the woman while Sasuke decided to follow Sakura with the men chasing after her. He wasn't all too worried about her safety, the men had been all too easy to take care of. He was just curious as to what she would do. Though he would be lying if he said that he didn't want to keep an eye on her.

The kunoichi let out a sigh and shrugged before yawning into her palm. "Who knows?"

Onyx orbs looked to the side to see a head of pink hair laying on his shoulder and a hand rubbing at closed eyes. The scene brought a small smirk to his lips. "Tired?"

"No." she grumbled before another yawn left her lips, making the Uchiha chuckle. Wind shifted through the area, pink hair flying back and into the dark haired male's face. It smelled vaguely of vanilla and it made him want to run his fingers through it to feel it's soft texture.

"What are you two doing?" The two genin frowned and looked up to see their sensei looking at them quizzically before his gaze shifted to the male on the ground beside the horse's feet. "And why is our client unconscious?"

Sakura laughed knowingly. "Hey Kakashi-sensei." she called out to get his attention.

The copy ninja brought his gaze up to look at the female, signaling that he was listening.

"Can I bring Kyoun along for this mission? He's been getting restless just sitting around the house." she asked excitedly, shifting around so that she fully faced her sensei.

"Sakura, this is an A-ranked mission." he stated.

The kunoichi's face fell at that. "He won't cause any trouble, I promise."

"If I have to worry about anybody causing trouble, it'll be his owner." he replied, the tone in his voice practically smirking.

Sakura frowned deeply while the dark haired male behind her let out a soft chuckle. At least those two found amusement in the copy ninja's words because she sure didn't, though it was most likely true. Either way, she had more important things to attend to. Jumping off the horse, the kunoichi landed in front of her sensei, giving him a serious look.

"Do you have the scroll?" she asked and was pleased when he reached into a pocket and pulled out the requested item.

"Do you have any idea what this scroll possesses, Sakura?" the copy nin asked, arching an eyebrow at her as she took it from him, sat down on the ground, and rolled out the scroll, the end bumping into the client's still unconscious head.

"Of course I do." she replied, "That's why I asked you to get it for me." She was completely aware of what was inside the scroll and she was completely positive that she could handle it.

The kunoichi bit the pad of her right thumb and smeared it onto the scroll, her name slowly appearing beside two other people's. Once she wrote her whole name, she bit the rest of her fingers and slammed them into the space beside her name. After that, she did numerous hand signs in a fast pace and the scroll began to spin around in the air in circles. Sakura continued to do the hand signs until the scroll fell back onto the ground and the previous names had disappeared, only revealing a blank scroll. That is until the pinkette smeared her blood onto it, writing her name again and then slamming her fingertips into the paper. Once she was finished, she held out her hand and the scroll started to wrap around her arm and wrist, slowly etching it's way into the her skin and resting on the under side of her right wrist.

Sakura waited patiently for it to end and upturned her wrist to see that a picture of a huge scythe was imprinted into the skin there. Standing up, she stretched out her hand, flexing her fingers and feeling sparks of electricity pulse through her veins.

"I hope you know what you're doing, Sakura." Kakashi spoke. "Even the two before you couldn't handle that contract and that was just the first half. There's no telling what the other half does."

The pink haired female rested her hand down by her side, still feeling the spiking energy racing through her hand as she grinned up at her sensei. "I'll be fine, sensei. Besides, we have a mission to start." she replied, pointing down at their waking client.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura barely listened as their client gave them the details about what they were supposed to be doing. She was more focused on other things like the upcoming battle once they entered the Snow Country, the way her hand constantly twitched with crackling energy, and more jutsus that she could learn while they were on the mission. There were so many things that she could still learn and she tried to think back to any sort of techniques that the members of the Akatsuki used. Maybe she could use some of their styles, though it would be hard with most of the members, considering that she didn't have their Kekkai Genkais. So that ruled out Deidara, naturally Tobi and Itachi, and whoever else that she didn't bother mentioning. Sasori's technique didn't sound too bad. Chakra strings. . . She would have to practice that on someone in the near future.

There was also Naruto's Rasengan. That wouldn't be too hard to master with her level of chakra control. Why was she feeling so antsy about the whole thing? It felt like her whole body was twitching with anticipation. She didn't think that she could sit in her chair for much longer, she was ready to jump up and go crazy.

"Sakura."

The pinkette looked up to meet her sensei's gaze and it was only then that she realized her whole body _had_ been twitching, trembling was more like it. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." she nodded, "Its just the side effects of the contracts."

Kakashi nodded his head in return, getting back to business and discussing things with their client. Sasuke watched the kunoichi warily from the corner of his eye. As soon as the copy nin adverted his attention away from her, her head had fell back down to gaze at the folded hands in her lap. It looked like she was anxious about something, like she was completely on edge. He hadn't failed to notice the sudden sparks of energy ever since she took that scroll from Kakashi, and it slightly unnerved him. The Uchiha wasn't sure what she had done or what it was doing to her but he didn't like it at all.

Soon, the group ended the discussion and set off to search for the troublesome, female actor. Sakura walked behind their client, Sandayuu, as they searched for the woman. If the kunoichi remembered correctly, she was in a bar on the other side of town later that evening, though the pinkette had no idea where she was at that moment. Most likely with Naruto, though wherever _he_ happened to be was a mystery.

Sakura held out her hand to look at the back of her wrist, the scythe under her skin twitching irritably for some sort of action. The kunoichi let out an annoyed sigh. She was going to have a tough time trying to control the Banshee later on, much less the scythe. At least it kept things interesting enough.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Wind whipped around pink locks as jade orbs looked over the side of the ship, watching the ocean water hit up against the wood as the stars shone in the reflection of the liquid surface. Sakura sat down on the deck, putting her legs in between the railings and hanging them over the edge. Her sensei and two teammates were on the other side of the deck, discussing details of the mission. She had other things on her mind, making her want to be alone at that moment.

The female closed her eyes and rested her head against one of the wooden railings next to her. All of a sudden, a piercing scream echoed throughout her mind, shrill and earsplitting. Gritting her teeth in pain, she looked over to see where it had come from and found that her team was perfectly fine, as if nothing was wrong. Realizing what had caused it, Sakura looked back down to the scythe imprinted into the flesh of the underside of her wrist. A harsh pulsation rippled through her entire body, causing her to grunt in discomfort and lean further into the railing.

Another agonizing scream filled her thoughts and she clenched her eyes shut, her entire body erupting with goosebumps. Sakura tried to block out the wailing, but it seemed to only make it worse. Soon, the pink haired female was clutching at the hair of her scalp, her body shaking in small tremors. The skin around her wrist was crawling fiercely and when she opened her eyes to look, there were grey markings working it's way up and around her forearm.

Moving her head to look away from it, her jade orbs looked into the water and the kunoichi couldn't help but let out a loud gasp, though she couldn't hear her own noise over the loud screech coming from the woman she saw in the water. Instead of the her own reflection, a hideous woman looked back at her. Her skin was a cold grey color, like death itself, and her features were wrinkled into a terrifying expression. The woman's long hair was pitch black and coiled around in knots and tangles. Her teeth were long and sharp, coiling around into a nasty snarl. Her eyes were pure red and held such an evil hatred as she stared back at Sakura. The cloak that was around her shoulders was black as well but that was the only thing the pinkette could pick out on the woman's clothing.

Jade orbs followed the movement as the woman's eyes lowered to the kunoichi's legs hanging over the side of the ship. Realizing what she was planning to do, Sakura moved back from the railing as quickly as she could and clutched at her ears when the woman let out another piercing screech.

"Sakura? What's wrong?" someone asked as the kunoichi skidded to a crawling stop in the center of the deck.

The female's eyes were wide and her entire body was shivering, especially her right arm as the grey markings continued to crawl up her arm. Sakura closed her eyes, willing the woman to back off, though it only seemed to make it worse. Suddenly, a hand touched her shoulder and there was another wail, yet the kunoichi couldn't help but notice that it was different. It wasn't filled with anger or hatred, it was filled with some sort of sorrow. The female's body started to calm down, the shaking slowly coming to a stop and when it did, Sakura could feel the markings in her arm starting to retract. It was a tingling feeling and when all them disappeared back into the scythe where it had come from, the muscles and veins in her wrist twitched.

Jade orbs looked up to meet the person that was holding onto her. Onyx eyes looked down at her with concern, a hand coming to wrap around her shoulder. Sakura blinked at him for a moment, her breathing evening back out. "Sasuke?"

He nodded his head and pulled back his hands, watching her carefully. Naruto was kneeling down next to her other side while Kakashi moved to sit down in front of her, crossing his legs. Sakura adverted her attention from the frowning Uchiha to narrow her eyes at her sensei when he grasped her right hand. She watched as he placed her palm upright on his knee and bit the pad of his thumb. Jade orbs widened as she snatched her hand back, realizing what he was about to do.

"You're not going to put a seal on her, Kakashi-sensei. I won't let you." she spoke firmly, placing her hand in between her thighs and clenching them tightly together childishly. Sakura knew that if he was being completely serious about the matter then something like her thighs wouldn't keep him from getting to her wrist, but it was worth a shot.

The copy nin gave her a serious look, though most of it was covered by the mask and that was when the kunoichi knew that he _was_ being completely serious about sealing up the banshee. "Don't be foolish, Sakura. You've only had it for a few hours and its already tearing at your mind."

"What? What is?" Naruto asked worriedly, blue eyes looking between his pink haired teammate and their sensei.

Sakura dismissed her blonde friend for a moment, keeping her attention on the man before her. "Sealing her will only piss her off more, sensei. I wouldn't have asked you for the scroll if I didn't know that I could handle it."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at her for a moment but the female's gaze was firm, returning his challenge wholeheartedly. She was strong, that was for sure. Even though he was her sensei, in ways she was his superior. The kunoichi had seen many more days than he did, years in fact. She had lived a whole other life before this one, her mind was no doubt more developed than any of her peers. Aside from that, she could be the most stubborn person he'd ever met at times when she wanted to be. That exact moment was proof of that statement.

The copy nin let out a sigh as he lifted up a hand and scratched at the back of his head. "Alright, but if it gets to where you can't handle it then-"

"I'll tell you." Sakura smiled triumphantly.

"What's going on?" the blonde whined as he held his head in confusion.

"Yes, Sakura." Kakashi said, leaning back calmly. "Please tell us exactly what's going on."

The female frowned up at him and the so called 'request' he just implied. The silver haired male wanted her to tell them all of the details so that they would know what was going on and what to do if she needed the help. Glancing over to her left, she met curious dark eyes. Sasuke wanted to know as well. Sakura knew that he would want to know the details the most and that he would manage to get the answers one way or another from her. And yet, it wasn't that fact that had her resolve breaking. It was the way he looked at her, with such curiosity and a genuine concern for her well being.

"Fine." she sighed, lifting up her wrist for the three to look at the scythe imprinted into her skin. Looking over to Naruto's gaze, she began to recall the details of the earlier events of the day. "When you were off somewhere earlier today, I had Kakashi-sensei get me a scroll that was hidden somewhere in the Hokage building."

Naruto's curious gaze instantly set into a serious expression, showing that he was listening intently. "I heard that you made a contract with the toads when you were off training with Jiraiya." she continued, watching as the blonde nodded his head in affirmation. "Its a lot like that and when Kakashi-sensei calls on his dogs." The pinkette looked down into her lap, her eyes falling on the scythe on her wrist. "On one side of the scroll was a scythe, its a summoning jutsu that calls upon it. On the other side was a banshee. Unlike other summoning jutsus, the amount of chakra I put into it won't change anything. Its always the same."

"Why is that?" the blonde asked curiously.

"About forty years ago," their sensei began, making the two other males look up at him, though Kakashi's gaze stayed on Sakura. "one of Konoha's shinobi teams found a woman wandering around while on a mission. It was said that she was a beautiful woman that held onto a large scythe and that her shrill scream and evil gaze were enough to kill most of the team members. In order to survive, one shinobi had to seal her spirit inside a scroll."

"That man." the pinkette began, taking over the story telling from her sensei. Everyone's eyes turned back to look at her but she continued to stare into her wrist. "He created a summoning scroll and made a contract with the woman. He died soon after and the next person to get the scroll, a young kunoichi from a nearby village, was the next to sign the scroll and make the contract."

"What happened to them?" the blonde asked.

"They committed suicide soon after the signing." Kakashi spoke, his voice calm yet firm.

Onyx and blue eyes widened drastically as they gaped up at their sensei. "Why?" they both questioned in unison but then looked back at the kunoichi incredulously.

"Insanity." she answered. "That was only with them signing the contract with the first half; the banshee. That scythe the woman carried has incredible power. So much, in fact, that a mere jounin would have trouble handling it." As if hearing that it was mentioned, the weapon sent out a spark of electricity throughout the pinkette's arm, making her grit her teeth.

Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed at the information he was taking in. Insanity? Contracts? Suicide? Was Sakura going to- No! Why would she do that? "Why would you make a contract with something so dangerous?" he grounded out, gritting his teeth in mixed emotions.

Jade orbs looked over to meet his eyes, a frown set on the kunoichi's lips. "Because I had to."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes as his fists shook in frustration. Every time he thought she was finally out of trouble, she went and did something else completely crazy. And now her sanity was apart of the equation. Just great. Though he questioned if she actually had it in the first place considering she would do something so drastic. He should have stopped her when he was watching her sign that scroll, or at least question her motives.

"Did Shishou give you any information about it?" Sakura asked, turning her attention back up to Kakashi.

He nodded his head in return. "She said that the memories should appear in dreams."

The pinkette nodded and stood up, her team's eyes on her the whole time. She would have to prepare herself for the nightmares she would have that night. They would be horrid, she knew, but that would be her first key to controlling the banshee. Sakura was determined to understand what those before her could not. The pink haired female was more than a mere shinobi, more than a mere woman. She had seen death, torture, and pain. She could handle this and she would use that power to take out Orochimaru and everyone else that would dare to threaten Konoha.

Sasuke watched as the pinkette stood up and began to walk away from them, her head down in seemingly deep thought. Dark eyebrows furrowed worriedly as he continued to watch her retreating form. What was he going to do? What _could_ he do? Sakura could only do this by herself, something else he didn't like her doing. She was always doing things by herself during missions, usually leaving him and Naruto to wonder what she was up to and if she was alright.

"She'll be alright, you two."

The Uchiha looked over to see their sensei looking at him and when he glanced over, he saw that Naruto had a worried expression on his face as well.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

_Trees littered the entire area as fog seemingly crawled out of the ground. Jade orbs looked around, wondering where she was. It was some sort of forest. Odd. She didn't remember being there. She didn't remember this forest at all, yet something told her that she was still in the Land of Fire. The kunoichi began a careful walk, looking over her surroundings for any sense of familiarity. Soon, crying reached the pinkette's ears and she set out into a run to get to the person. Something was telling her to move forward, to go forth. So she did._

_All of a sudden, Sakura felt her body being lifted up, pausing her sprint, as the scene changed. Her feet touched the ground and she found herself standing in the center of a small hut. Jade orbs glanced around the space, noting that it only had two beds and a stone fire pit near the opposite wall of the beds. There was an elderly lady sitting down comfortably on one of the beds made of animal furs. She had long, white hair that reached down to her ankles and piercing, blue eyes._

_Suddenly, the one door in the room swung open, gathering both of the female's attentions, and in stepped a beautiful, young woman that filled the pinkette with envy, though she couldn't have been more than fifteen. She wore a gorgeous smile as she shut the door behind her and made her way to stand by the elderly lady. Much like the woman's, her hair was a deep white color, almost silver, but it stopped down to her waist. The woman's eyes were a brilliant, crimson red and were filled with mirth as happy tears ran down her cheeks._

"_Oh, Gran Gran." she smiled, grabbing a hold of the elder's hands. "He said it! He said he loved me!"_

"_Who did, child?"_

_Before Sakura could hear the young woman's reply, the scene shifted again and the pinkette found herself landing outside the hut she had previously been in. Even though she could tell it was the same hut, it looked worn and torn apart. In fact, it looked burnt, just barely surviving a fire attack. A loud, pained cry could be heard off in the distance and Sakura couldn't help but run toward it. She passed multiple trees, going deeper into the forest. The sight she was met with had her eyes widening and she was filled with an immense amount of sorrow and pain._

_The young woman she saw earlier had to be about eighteen or so now and she was on the ground, clutching the elderly woman's body to her. A large scythe was stuck in her stomach as she looked up at her granddaughter. Tears fell from red eyes and landed on the woman's cheek, mixing in with the blood that fell from in between her lips._

"_Don't go, Gran Gran." the young woman cried._

"_Kaita, you're so strong. I knew you would eventually find out what that man was trying to do." Gran Gran mumbled before her eyes closed for the last time. A new string of tears fell from Kaita's red, sorrowful eyes and she clutched onto the woman tighter._

_Then, Sakura's feet lifted off the ground as everything shifted again and she found herself standing in the center of a grassy field. The silver haired, young woman, now looking about twenty, laid on the ground to the side with the same scythe clutched in her palm. The sight made the pink haired kunoichi want to wretch. Kaita was lying on the ground, practically naked, her clothes torn in so many places as tears ran down her pale cheeks. There were scratches at the exposed skin of her thighs and waist and it didn't take much thought to figure out that she had been raped._

_What had Sakura's anger boiling even more was that a man that looked exactly like the person that she vowed to kill was standing before the crushed and crying woman. The man's dark hair fell to his shoulders in straight strands and his eyes were incredibly cold. There was something different about him than Orochimaru though, he was taller and broader and didn't have the stripes coming down from his eyes. Was that man his father?_

_Broken red orbs looked up at the man standing before her, a dreadful and agonizing hate clear in them as she gritted her teeth in anger. It was obvious to anyone that that man had betrayed her in more ways than one._

"_I hate you." she whispered brokenly._

_A sinister smirk crossed the male's features before he leaned over and snatched the scythe from the woman's grasp as if taking back something that was stolen from him. "Good." he replied before bringing down the blade and stabbing the woman in the heart._

"_No!" Sakura screamed and then her world turned black, slowly spiraling into nothingness._

The pink haired kunoichi sat upright in the bed, her breathing coming out in short pants as sweat adorned her body. She ran a hand through her sweat drenched bangs and looked over to see her two teammates sleeping in their own beds. Kakashi was nowhere to be seen so she assumed he was already awake and outside on the deck. Letting out a sigh, she threw the rest of the covers off of her sweaty body and stood up. Walking out of the room, she made her way to the deck.

As soon as Sakura stepped into the cool, morning air, she felt completely relieved from the heat of her skin. It was refreshing and the wind gliding across her face and through her hair only helped matters. Jade eyes looked around and found her sensei leaning up against a railing, reading his book. Walking over at a calm pace, Sakura made her way to him and sat down on the wooden floor, leaning her back against a railing.

"Get enough sleep?" he asked without looking from his book to glance down at the pinkette by his side, though his attention was on her and not the words on the page in front of him.

Sakura let out a long sigh and closed her eyes, images of the dream she had flashing through her mind. "Yeah." she whispered weakly, a pain that wasn't her own starting to etch it's way through her chest. Silence fell between them for a moment, the sun slowly rising over the horizon, giving the ocean water a beautiful red and pink tint, but the kunoichi was too focused on other things than to focus on that. "Her name is Kaita." she mumbled without opening her eyes.

"What happened to her?" Kakashi asked, finally looking away from his book to watch the small female sitting down beside him.

"She lived with her grandmother in a small hut and when she came home one day, she was incredibly happy that some man had said he loved her. She was fifteen when I saw that." she replied slowly. "Then when she was eighteen, the man had betrayed her and killed her grandmother. Once twenty, she was raped by him and he killed her. The rest, I can only fill in with my imagination. But there was one thing that made the rest look normal."

"What was that?"

Jade orbs fluttered open to look sadly up at the other side of the empty deck. "That man. . . I'm almost positive that it was Orochimaru's father."

"Are you sure?" her sensei asked incredulously and the female could just imagine that his eyes had widened at her comment.

"Yeah." she nodded in return. "Just makes me want to kill the snake bastard even more."

"_I would like that."_ said a smooth, familiar voice that echoed throughout the kunoichi's mind.

Sakura frowned deeply as she blinked tiredly. Why wasn't she surprised that the woman had managed to make herself known inside her head again? _"I'm so glad you haven't decided to start screaming yet."_

"_Don't tempt me, little girl."_

"_My name is Sakura."_ the kunoichi replied firmly, closing her eyes.

"_Very well, Sakura. It appears that you know of a man that is similar to the one I despise."_

"_Is that why you're so against to being sealed into a scroll or attached to a human?"_

"_I wish to take out my revenge and I cannot do so while attached to mere humans."_ Kaita said bitterly with a hint of hate in her smooth voice.

"_Naturally."_ Sakura replied. It was always about revenge, always about having to do it by themselves, though after witnessing some of the woman's memories firsthand, the kunoichi didn't blame the woman one bit. And the pinkette didn't have much room to criticize, she was planning on taking out her vengeance on the snake man as well. _"What if I told you that I could help you with your revenge?"_

"_Then my services will be yours."_

"_Promise?"_ the pinkette questioned skeptically.

"_I am a woman of my word. Now how will you be of use to me?"_

"_That man. There is another that looks exactly like him. Did he have a son?"_

"_He did. I found out that night he murdered Gran Gran that he was wed to another woman and had a first born son, though I did not get his name."_

"_Great."_ Sakura groaned out in irritation. So she _was_ right. _"I was actually planning on killing Orochimaru within three years of now. He has caused too much grief. I would like your help, at least until then."_

"_Very well, Sakura. Until that time, I will help you. Consider yourself lucky that I don't destroy your mind."_

"_I will."_ the pinkette laughed lightly and then the woman retreated from her mind. Jade orbs opened and looked up to see Kakashi looking down at her quizzically. Sakura blinked for a moment until giving him a sheepish smile. "I'm pretty sure I just made a new friend." Surprisingly, it was easy enough. She had only had a massive migraine for the whole night.

The copy ninja stared at her for a moment before letting out a defeated sigh. "I'm not about to ask."

The kunoichi chuckled at him before her features turned serious. "By the way, sensei."

Kakashi looked at her serious expression, knowing that she was about to tell him something important.

"When we get to land, we'll be attacked."

"By who?" he asked, furrowing his brows.

"Sorry, I can't remember their names." she replied, giving him a frown. "But you know them. The worst part though is that they're wearing some kind of armor that genjutsu or ninjutsu won't work on." Kakashi frowned deeply and the pinkette could see it clearly behind his mask. "At least, not low level jutsus." she finished, grinning.

~x~

Please review what you think :) I'll try to update in a few days


	12. Entering: Land of Snow

Thank you for the reviews and for being patient :) I'm glad to see that some of you like Kaita. Honestly, I was worried about adding her in at first, but I plan on her having a very important role in the future chapters.

I'm also going to update my No Longer Weak, so those of you who have been asking about that, there ya go and I hope you'll enjoy reading it. :)

I'll try to update as soon as I can and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter as well :)

Chapter 12: Entering: Land of Snow

Sakura sat on the railing of the ship as the movie crew began to set up the cameras and worked on the actors' make up. Naruto sat down on the ground, grumbling about something or another. Kakashi leaned up against the railing, the same position he had been in all that morning. Sasuke was the third of the team to wake up, after Sakura and right before Naruto. The silent Uchiha chose to lean up against the railing, his arms folded across each other and resting on the wood as his eyes stayed on the long, pink hair flowing in the breeze.

Sasuke watched the female carefully as she sat on top of the rail, her jade eyes calm and a small smile on her lips. She didn't look to be in any pain and he doubted someone like her could lose their sanity in one day. Was she really alright or was she just covering it up so they wouldn't worry? Now that he thought about it, she never really needed comforting, never sought after it. She had only hugged him by her own choice that once after their battle with Zabuza and that was only because of him, not because she wanted the comfort. There was when Kakashi had held her when she cried, but she didn't ask for that either. She never shared any of her troubles with anyone. Didn't she trust them? Didn't she trust him?

At that moment, Sakura turned her head to look at him and gave him a gentle smile. Sasuke blinked out of his thoughts for a moment before smiling softly back at her. The kunoichi's gaze softened as she looked back at the woman they were supposed to be protecting as she began to act out a scene.

"_That boy."_ Kaita whispered into her mind.

Sakura glanced back over to see the Uchiha looking out at the ocean, watching the calm waves pass by. _"Sasuke?"_

"_Yes, I sense part of that man on him."_

The kunoichi's eyes widened for a moment until returning calm and she looked back at the actors. _"But how can you tell?"_

"_There are many things that I am aware of, Sakura. Just like you aren't originally from this time."_

Sakura's eyebrow twitched, though she shouldn't have been surprised. She was, after all, harboring a spirit inside her mind. _"What you're sensing is the curse mark Orochimaru gave him. Sasuke's no threat."_

"_You say that now, child, but he has an evil deep inside him."_

"_Yeah."_ the pinkette replied solemnly,_ "I know."_

Kaita didn't reply for a good while, leaving Sakura to watch the Princess' acting and the fact that she couldn't cry. The battle was so close to happening. They were so close to the Snow Country.

"_There will be death soon."_

"_Yeah. Say, I have a question."_

"_What is it?"_ Kaita questioned, curiosity in her smooth tone, the first emotion Sakura had heard from her other than anger and pain.

"_Why does your scythe spark with electricity at random moments?"_

"_That would be it's way of trying to get your attention."_

Pink eyebrows furrowed a bit, her tone showing her own curiosity as she asked, _"What for?"_

"_It wishes to be set free and be used."_

"_So its bored, huh?"_

"_To put it simply, yes."_

'Great.' the kunoichi thought, tilting her head to the side and turning around so she looked out at the ocean, throwing her legs over the other side of the railing. As if sensing that her and the woman were speaking of it, the scythe pulsed in her wrist and sent out a small spark throughout her veins. The whole situation was odd. In less than a day, what had at first been a terrifying, screaming banshee, had turned into an interesting, beautiful woman. Sakura didn't want to say that she 'tamed' her, because the woman had a mind of her own and that seemed to disregard the respect the pinkette had grown to feel for the woman over the hours.

"_I do not like that boy."_

Sakura let out a sigh as she narrowed her eyes and frowned at the ocean. _"I can tell, but if you're going to search through my memories like I know you're doing, then could you at least look at the ones from this time too?"_

"_Very well."_

The kunoichi let out another sigh, slumping her shoulders over in defeat. Did Kakashi have to deal with this when it came to his dogs? Sakura doubted Naruto had a bunch of toads searching through his mind. It made her feel sort of violated and she was exactly sure how Kaita managed to do what she was doing. Could spirits look through memories and give a person their own? She didn't think that was possible.

"What's the matter, Sakura?" the copy ninja next to her asked, not looking up from his book.

"She's rummaging through my head." she grumbled out, bringing up a knee to set her foot on the railing and wrapping her arms around it. She placed her chin on her knee as she watched a small wave hit up against the side of the ship.

"Causing trouble?" he asked, looking over at her.

"Not really." she replied, glancing over to meet her sensei's gaze. "Just finding out _all_ of my secrets."

Kakashi blinked at her for a moment before turning to look back down at his book. "I see." he replied, knowing that she was referring to the fact that she wasn't from that time.

"Sakura has secrets?" Naruto asked, joining in on the conversation.

Sakura tilted her head to the side to look down at him. "Well, I am a girl. Its only natural that I keep secrets."

"Ohh." he keened, sitting up straight and smiling brightly up at her. "Can I know?"

"No." she frowned, and then stuck her tongue out at him playfully, grinning. "That's why they're called 'secrets'."

Naruto let out a snort as he closed his eyes and turned his head. "I didn't want to hear your girly secrets anyway, especially not if you were gonna tell me who you like."

The kunoichi let out a soft laugh. "I thought you already knew who it was."

Sasuke arched an eyebrow, listening to the interaction between his two teammates curiously. "That's right." the blonde exclaimed, looking back up at the kunoichi. "And the only reason why he doesn't know is because he's so dense." The dark haired male narrowed his eyes at the male before letting out a sigh and looking over at the copy nin.

"Is this mission really A-ranked, Kakashi-sensei? How hard could it be to protect a simple actress?" the Uchiha asked.

"I wouldn't get too comfortable, Sasuke." the silver haired male replied. "We still don't have any idea who our enemies are." Even though he had gotten all of the details from the pink haired kunoichi, but he couldn't tell them that. Sakura specifically told him and Tsunade that she didn't want anyone else to know her secret, especially Sasuke. She was worried that if he found out about her true reason for being there then he would feel betrayed. She was worried that he would think that she was there only to make sure he didn't betray Konoha. That she was only his friend so that he would remain loyal to the village.

"Hn." the dark haired male replied, looking back out at the water, but then turned his attention to the female beside him when she stood up, her feet plastered to the railing and her back straight and proud.

Pink hair drifted in the wind gently as jade orbs looked out at the calm water, thoughts running through her head as Kaita continued to search eagerly through her memories as if they were some exciting story that was definitely worth telling. It made her feel a bit anxious. A woman that she only knew for a few hours knew all about her life, about how she always got in the way, about how she used to always do nothing and chase after Sasuke. About how she treated Naruto. . . Sakura didn't think that she could ever forgive herself for how she treated her best friend back then. . . How could she have been so cold and indifferent to someone that she considered her brother now?

Though if she was honest with herself, she was more ashamed of how she was with the youngest Uchiha. She hated how she acted around him and that was why she made sure not to seek out his attention unless she felt that he needed it. The female didn't want to make him see her as pushy or annoying, though if he came out and told her that he wished for her to express her 'desires' more freely then she would do it. However, she didn't see him telling her that anytime soon.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura stood at the back of the ship, leaning over the railing and looking out at the reddish colored water that reflected the beautiful sunset. For some reason, the water soothed her nerves in calming waves. She could hear quiet footsteps coming to stand behind her and wasn't surprised when hands grabbed the railing on each side of her.

"Hey Sasuke." she spoke gently, a small smile on her lips.

"Are you alright?" he asked, getting straight to the point.

The kunoichi leaned her head back to rest it on the shoulder behind her and nodded. "Yeah."

"Good." he replied before letting go of the railing to wrap his arms around her. Thoughts of a few hours ago ran through his mind, something Naruto had said; calling the person that she liked dense. The Uchiha did have a few doubts whether she had feelings for him or not but maybe he could get the answer out of her without having to actually ask if it was him. He didn't want to seem too curious if it turned out that it wasn't. He frowned at that thought but he quickly pushed it aside. "Am I really that dense?"

Sakura let out a soft laugh and closed her eyes. She knew what he was doing, trying to find out if she truly cared for him, but still look confident and cool in the process. "No."

Sasuke let a genuine smile cross his lips as he tightened his hold on her, watching the way her pink bangs blew softly in the wind. He had his answer and he was silently relieved. Sakura did care for him the same way he cared for her, though it should have been obvious from their past actions with each other. The Uchiha didn't care about being too sure though.

"_Such a drastic difference."_

"_What do you mean?"_ the kunoichi asked in return.

Kaita wasted no time in replying, _"You two represent Yin and Yang; complete opposites."_

"_There's another message in those words, isn't there, Kaita?"_

"_It appears so."_

The pinkette smirked slightly at the woman's words, knowing that Sasuke couldn't hear her, and turned around to wrap her arms around the dark haired male's waist. Sasuke closed his eyes and rested his cheek against the top of the female's head, breathing in her naturally sweet scent. One of his hands raked up to run through her hair, feeling the silky softness that it possessed as it slid over and through his fingers. The dark haired male then opened his eyes and cupped a smooth cheek. Onyx orbs looked down as Sakura tilted her head up to stare back into his eyes. He glanced down to look at her parted lips and then back up into her jade orbs.

Should he do it? The young male had done it at the hospital on pure impulse, merely wishing to prove to her that he could be better than his older brother. Though now, with Itachi out of the picture, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a bit nervous about pressing forward. The very first time when he was about to kiss her, he wasn't even aware of what he was about to do or how he would feel afterward, but now. . .

Sakura saw the switch in his attention for that brief moment and it had her smiling again. Before the Uchiha could lean in, she brought up a hand to run it through his bangs and then rested her palm against the nape of his neck. Then, she pulled him in and brought his lips to meet hers gently. She was well aware that she hadn't started any contact with the male but looking at him now, she wanted to change that and still manage to keep herself from being what he had once called 'annoying'. The kunoichi was sure that he had his insecurities, even if he didn't show them, and she wanted to show him that she did, indeed, return his feelings. That was the least she could do.

Sasuke's eyes widened for a moment, taken aback by the kunoichi's move. He blinked away his surprise and closed his eyes, leaning into her more to deepen the contact. His heart fluttered in content at her soft touch, reveling in the way she seemed to fit him perfectly and melt in his arms. It seemed his entire being fluttered in a warm, soft bundle, but all too soon, that warmth came crashing back down into the lukewarm waves that his consciousness was constantly plagued by when another presence made themselves known.

"Ewww, so groosss!"

The duo broke apart to look at Naruto standing a couple yards away, covering his face with his hands. "Ugh, Sakura. I can't believe you're kissing _Teme_." he grumbled. His hands fell from his face as he grinned at the duo, making the two frown at him deeply. "Can I have one too?" he asked teasingly.

Sakura blinked at him, not sure on how to respond, while Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the blonde. Almost instinctively, his arms tightened around her possessively and he turned her away slightly as if trying to keep the blonde from even thinking about touching her.

"Get lost, loser." he said, his eyes still narrowed.

Naruto let out an amused laugh, successfully getting under the usually stoic Uchiha's skin. The blonde stuck out his tongue playfully and began to walk closer to the duo. "No way, not until I ask Sakura something."

The pinkette tilted her head to the side and placed her hand on the Uchiha's upper arm, his tightened hold on her loosening in response. "What is it, Naruto?" she asked curiously.

Naruto stopped to stand next to them, arching an eyebrow at the female questioningly. "You said before that that lady or whatever was rummaging through your head, right?"

Sakura nodded her head, "Yeah."

"How is that?" he asked in response, blue eyes looking into jade.

The kunoichi felt Sasuke's arms around her fall down to his side but she didn't let go of his arm. In fact, she wrapped her own arm around his and pulled it close as she replied, "I'm not exactly sure, but since the banshee is a spirit, Naruto, she doesn't live at a specific place like the toads." 

"So she follows you around?" the Uchiha asked before the blonde could, raising a dark eyebrow. He didn't exactly like the thought of something being around her that was classified as dangerous, especially when none of them could see or hear it.

"Yeah." the kunoichi nodded again, looking up to meet onyx eyes and running a hand through her pink bangs. "So I don't really have to do the summoning jutsu for her, just the weapon that she uses."

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows while Naruto sat down on the ground, folding his legs and looking up at their pink haired teammate. Sakura let out a sigh and let go of the Uchiha's arm, choosing to sit down on the ground as well so she could answer the two's questions that were sure to come. Jade orbs looked expectantly into blue and sure enough, the blonde didn't disappoint.

"Why would you need to summon her weapon?" he asked.

"The scythe she used," Sakura began and could feel the dark haired male sit down beside her. "it basically had a mind of it's own and needed to be sealed separately inside the scroll; on the other side of it."

Naruto's face grew an excited aura as he beamed at her. "So if it has a mind of it's own, can it talk to you?"

Pink eyebrows furrowed a bit as she frowned, "Uh, no. Just Kaita can talk to me."

"Kaita?" Sasuke questioned.

Sakura nodded, yet again. "The banshee."

"_Such nosy children."_ the silver haired woman stated.

"_Yeah."_ Sakura chuckled in reply.

Jade eyes watched as blue ones widened in shock, making the pinkette's frown deepen at his expression. It looked like he had just seen a ghost. "What's wrong?"

"Your eyes changed color for a split second." Sasuke said, gazing into the female's eyes carefully. It was only for the tiniest moment, but her eyes had flickered red, a deep, crimson red that rivaled his own Sharingan in intensity.

"Really?" the kunoichi questioned, giving him a skeptical look. He nodded in return and Naruto had exclaimed that they turned red, confirming the Uchiha's words. Sakura gave him a quizzical look before looking back down into her lap. So her eyes had changed color while she was communicating with Kaita. Seemed interesting enough, as long as they couldn't hear her, then it should be fine either way.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura had slept as peacefully as possible with the nearing battles. Just as the morning before, she had woken up after her sensei and before her two teammates. Walking out onto the deck, she found the copy ninja leaning up against a railing and reading his book. The kunoichi quietly made her way to sit down next to him, looking out at the water with half lidded eyes. Right when she was about to close her eyes, a folded piece of paper made it's way in front of her face.

Blinking at the item, she grasped it and looked quizzically up at the man that handed it to her. "What is this?" 

Kakashi retracted his hand to place it in his pocket, his eyes skimming over the words on the page in front of him. "The Hokage found it amongst the note that you gave her. She said it was to be delivered to you when no one else was around and when you had time. Seeing as how you're not troubled with your sanity at the moment and your teammates are asleep, I figured now is as good a time as any." 

Sakura arched an eyebrow at him but then turned to look at the note in her hand. She slowly opened it and when it was all the way unfolded, jade orbs widened with recognition. The kunoichi recognized this handwriting, such beautiful handwriting that could only belong to one person that she knew. A small photograph fell out of the note and into her lap but she didn't pay much attention to it as she looked over the words carefully and slowly.

"_Hey there, Ugly._"

A weak smile took over the pinkette's lips, silently happy at the nickname that the male had given her, the nickname that she hadn't heard from him in years.

"_I'm not sure how you plan on changing the events of the past. I'm also not sure whether or not if you'll be able to stop the traitor from leaving. Either way, I don't care. Though I do ask you that if you do manage to keep him here, that you request to recruit me onto your team in that time. The Hokage has already agreed to my request in this one. The rest is up to you to figure out._

_I know I wasn't the most bearable teammate to you and Naruto, but being apart of Team Seven was the best thing that happened to me. I hope you'll give my past self that chance again and to be patient with me. I'm sure that you still have that inhuman strength of yours, so in order to hopefully save myself of some pain, I advice you to ignore most of my negative comments, especially the nicknames that I give to you and Dickless._"

Sakura couldn't help but laugh at his words. He was asking her to ignore his distasteful nicknames yet he was still using them. Leave it up to Sai to do something like that.

"_I'll be looking forward to see how things turn out. I'm sure you'll do what's best for everyone, Sakura. You always were the most caring out of our group. Be careful. I'll miss you._

_~Sai_"

Sakura's eyes began to tear up as she looked over the last three words he wrote down in the note. He was the last person that she expected that from and yet that seemed to make it have a bigger effect on her. Placing the note in her lap, she picked up the picture and a sad smile crossed her features as she gazed down at the very first picture they took as a team; with Yamato smiling awkwardly behind them with Sai smiling the smile that always got on the kunoichi's nerves. Her and Naruto looked at the dark haired male with their eyes narrowed and a questioning frown on their lips.

"An old teammate?" Kakashi asked, bringing the pinkette out of her thoughts.

Sakura blinked away the tears as she looked up at her sensei. He had his book away as he crouched down in front of her, looking down at the photo in her hands. "Yeah." she nodded, her small smile still on her face.

"What was he like?"

"At first," she began, her eyes lowering to look at the pale, dark haired artist. "Naruto and I only saw him as a nuisance, a temporary replacement for the loss of Sasuke until we brought him back. But. . . after awhile, he became an actual member of Team Seven to us. He became our friend and he came to know and understand me just as well as Naruto did.

"He had a bad past, at least by my standards, and he had trouble understanding people and emotions, often causing us to get into arguments." Sakura's smile brightened as she looked up to meet the copy nin's gaze. "He was a great friend and an amazing comrade."

Kakashi watched her for another moment before taking out his book from his pocket and flipping back to the last page he was at. "What will you do? If Sasuke doesn't leave?"

Jade eyes blinked for a moment but she knew her answer immediately and without hesitation, she answered him, "I'm getting him back. He was my teammate too and I won't leave him behind."

The silver haired male smiled underneath his mask at her determined comment. The female had such a strong loyalty to her teammates, to her friends. Sakura could easily leave the male to do what he was doing before if Sasuke didn't leave. He would've never known about Team Seven and would have continued on with his life, yet the kunoichi was still going to make sure that he would be apart of the team. How she would do it, he didn't know, but he was sure that she could manage it somehow.

Sakura took one last glance at her pale friend and placed the photo in the corner of the note, folding it back up like it had been before. Then she stood up and placed it into her pocket right as a dark haired male walked out onto the deck with his hands shoved into his pockets.

"We're all lucky to have you." Kakashi spoke softly. Jade orbs looked down at the still crouching male as he skimmed through the perverted pages of his book.

Sakura's face turned blank for a moment as she watched him and then turned to look at the Uchiha making his way over to them slowly. "I'm just fulfilling my mission, Kakashi-sensei."

"Yes, but to save _all_ of them." he replied, finally standing up. "Was that apart of your mission as well?"

The pink haired kunoichi's face fell. No. That wasn't apart of her mission. She didn't _have_ to befriend Naruto so early or bring him to live with her and give him a family. She didn't _have_ to take Sasuke from the Uchiha compound the night of the family massacre or become so close to him. And she didn't_ have_ to request Sai to be on the same team, but she was going to.

Sakura let a smile take over her features as she watched Sasuke stop to stand next to her and Kakashi. He gave them a quizzical look before walking to lean against the railing. The kunoichi let out a sigh and closed her eyes, leaning back against the railing as well and listening to the waves crash up against the ship.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura felt a surge of energy ripple through her arm as she watched a large pile of snow fall from the top of a nearby white mountain. Everyone was instantly on guard as three enemies in blue armor made themselves known.

"Everyone, get back!" Kakashi yelled and the three genin ran forward and in front of the Princess, prepared for battle.

Jade orbs watched the unfolding scene carefully as she stood in a battle stance in front of the woman that they were supposed to be protecting. The pinkette kept her gaze on the other kunoichi as she erupted ice from the ground aimed at the Uchiha. Though she wanted to rush out to block the attack somehow, she knew he could handle it and wasn't surprised when he repelled the attack with a fire jutsu. The female put up a wall of ice to block his attack in return and that was when Kaita called out to the pinkette in her mind.

"_Summon my scythe, Sakura. I'll distract the kunoichi."_

Sakura nodded her head and wasn't surprised to see the woman gliding quickly across the ground, her silver tresses and white gown floating behind her. The pink haired female bit the pad of her thumb, letting instinct take over as she smeared the blood over the image of the scythe on her wrist. Electricity shot through her hand as a large, metallic handle appeared in her palm. She whipped her arm out and the weapon shot out as it rested in her grasp, twice the size as her and a large, blue, curved blade at the end.

A loud, penetrating screech could be heard by only two as the other kunoichi fell to the ground behind her ice wall, the fire from the Uchiha's attack still going and eating through the ice slowly. Sakura didn't dwell on any details such as the carvings in the weapon or the way Kaita's silver hair was a deathly black as she screamed in the woman's ear. Jumping into action, the small female swung her scythe as soon as she was in range, hitting the female in the shoulder.

Sakura gritted her teeth in frustration as the orange haired female let out a piercing yell of pain, gaining everyone's attention. The pinkette pulled her weapon back, blood flying through the air and from the blue blade as the ice wall in front of them crumbled. Her aiming was off. The kunoichi had been aiming for the female's heart. Though she wasn't too surprised, it would take time to get used to such a weapon that was twice her size.

The young kunoichi turned around to glare at the male coming toward her on an odd snowboard, the force that he was going knocking Naruto right out of the way. Sakura didn't move from her spot as she felt the female behind her standing up to prepare an attack. Her blonde teammate quickly got up from his laying position from yards away and got out a kunai, Sasuke doing the same. Their female member still didn't move from her position as the male pulled back his armored arm and readied an attack.

The hand that wasn't holding the scythe flying up at the last moment, a blue barrier extracted from the kunoichi's hands and surrounded her, blocking the shinobi's attack and causing him to fly backward from the impact. Sakura's expression was calm as she watched the two enemies jump back and farther away from her, their eyes narrowed and calculating. The other kunoichi was holding her bleeding shoulder as she glared into jade eyes. The third member of their team jumped down to stand next to them, watching her cautiously and then soon retreated.

Sakura squeezed her palm around the metal weapon in her hand and wasn't surprised as it disappeared from her grasp and resided back to a slumber in her wrist, satisfied with the minimal amount of action that it was apart of. It was only then that the pinkette noticed that her whole forearm was covered with grey markings, slowly retreating back into the skin where the weapon was imprinted.

Sasuke watched carefully as their sensei stepped closer to the pink haired kunoichi. He said something quietly to her so that no one else could hear, but the dark haired male figured that it was her name. She nodded and they both began to walk off to discuss something in private. The Uchiha furrowed his eyebrows as he continued to watch them getting farther away, Naruto coming closer to stand beside him.

"Have you ever felt like that they know something we don't?" the blonde asked curiously, watching their teammate and sensei talking quietly to each other so they couldn't hear.

Sasuke nodded, "Yeah, and its like they don't want us to know."

"I also felt like this when we were at the Land of Waves, when Sakura was crying." Naruto stated, frowning. "It was like he knew exactly what was wrong with her."

The dark haired male continued to watch the other two carefully as the others began to file back into the boat, helping the actress up off the ground and pulling her along. What didn't he and Naruto know about her that their sensei did? It didn't seem fair; the fact that a grown man that she only knew for a couple of months could know more about her than her own teammates, than her own best friends. Sasuke and Naruto knew her for years, the blonde actually _lived_ with her, and yet she still hid secrets from them. Sasuke's frown deepened as he watched the pinkette and silver haired male make their way to them again. She looked worried for a moment, then unsure of something, until her gaze was firm and determined.

Sakura couldn't believe what her sensei had told her, then again, it did make sense. Since she knew where their hideout was, he wanted her to find it and clear it out while they were busy fighting. At first, she had told him that the idea was ridiculous, that in case they were hurt, they would need her. He had replied saying that she could prevent many deaths that were sure to come. And then she had reluctantly agreed and it didn't help her resolve when he said that he trusted her abilities and that she could do it. The two made it over to the two male genin, not missing their curious gazes, but doing nothing to indulge them in on their private conversation.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura sat in the chair between Naruto and Sasuke, but instead of listening to the others explaining who the Princess really was and whatnot, the kunoichi was focused on more important things. Sasuke would no doubt be with her the whole time just like last time, but could she still find the enemy's base and make it look like an accident? She would have to, unless she managed to leave without him somehow. The kunoichi would have to find their base either quickly or much later. Though if she remembered correctly, the Princess managed to escape from them again. If Sakura could move quickly enough, she could get going, find the enemy base, set any prisoners free that were most likely on the verge of death, set enough traps, blow it up, and then get back before anyone was killed.

No, she couldn't possibly do all that in that short amount of time, not if Sasuke was going to follow her and if she was going to look for any prisoners. She'd have to leave right now in order to get all of that done.

Sakura turned her attention up from the table in front of her and looked up at her sensei. Though Kakashi had been looking else where, he seemed to sense her gaze as he looked to meet her serious eyes. He blinked in response but softly nodded. Instantly, the kunoichi stood up from her spot, her teammates turning to look at her.

"Sakura? Where are you going?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Sorry." she smiled apologetically and rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, "I have to go to the bathroom."

The blonde arched an eyebrow at her while she began to walk away, Sasuke watching her movements carefully. The Uchiha knew that she was lying. Sakura never got up and left while they were discussing a mission, no matter how serious it was or not. She had to be planning something, but what? His onyx eyes watched as the pinkette walked out of the doorway and passed the woman they were supposed to be protecting. The dark haired male had the sudden urge to go with her but thought better of it. Naruto would most likely call him perverted names if he walked off to follow Sakura when she said that she was going to the restroom.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

Sakura walked around cautiously with her chakra completely masked as she looked around for any enemies, a bag full of food and supplies wrapped around her back and chest by a leather belt. She had found a huge area that looked like the ceiling opened up to let out what the underground lair held within it. The pinkette had found two, huge blimps inside and she recognized one of them as the one that they had captured the Princess and Naruto in. She had quickly made her way inside and put paper explosives around the engine and then some on the outside at the top of the blimp. She then concealed them with a jutsu so they wouldn't be seen and silently made her way to the other one, doing the same thing just in case, and then headed off to the dungeons.

The kunoichi looked around, keeping an eye and an ear out for any enemies. She quickly made it to her first cell that didn't contain a pile of rotten bones, the horrid smell being something that she was quite used to. Sakura looked over the person carefully that didn't seem to notice her presence yet. Good, she didn't want them getting loud and excited that she was there to rescue them. This cell held a young man that was probably in his late teens, a few years older than her psychical body. He sat on the floor and up against a wall, slumped over in dread with chains hooked up to his wrists and ankles. His dark hair fell down to his shoulders in oily strands and his dark skin was covered with sweat and grime. His clothes were tattered and dirty, much like his body and he was most likely tortured for whatever 'crimes' he had been sentenced for.

The silent female placed her palms on the cell bars, quietly bending them with her inhuman strength. Once she made enough room for her and the male, she stepped in and that was when he noticed her presence. He looked up to meet her gaze and she quickly put her index finger to her lips, signaling for him to be quiet. He nodded in return and looked over to the see the bent bars, then glanced over at the kunoichi working on his shackles.

Then at the exact moment she snapped them in half, a gruff voice spoke up further down the dark halls. Thinking quickly, Sakura went over to the bars and bent them back into perfect place, then went over to the man and made it so that it looked like he was still bound. The kunoichi hid in one of the farthest corners, hugging it and blending into the shadows perfectly as if she were a true assassin and not the genin shinobi she was supposed to be.

"I can't believe that that little girl practically tore my arm off." a familiar voice grumbled, walking passed the cell the pinkette was in. Next to her was the big guy she had seen earlier that used the electronic snowboard. It didn't shock her that they were in the dungeons, though she had to wonder what they were doing there.

"She isn't normal, that's for sure. We better keep a closer eye on her." the male spoke and Sakura waited patiently for them to get out of hearing shot, both of them running their mouths about some nonsense or another. Once Sakura couldn't feel their presence or chakra anymore, she walked out of the shadows silently and went over to the male, pulling off the shackles.

"My sister." he whispered and jade orbs glanced up to see his weak, brown eyes looking at her almost pleadingly. She nodded her head in return and motioned for him to keep quiet as she helped him up.

He didn't seem to have too many wounds but she couldn't afford to use her chakra when there were enemies nearby. The pinkette left the cell the same way she had come in, with the male following quietly behind her. It didn't take long to find the man's little sister and a few others, all remaining absolutely quiet by her orders. Some had more injuries than others and were weaker from hunger and Sakura didn't hesitate to give them some food, applying some bandages and healing ointment to their wounds while they munched on some bread eagerly. All together, she had rescued about six people; the young male, his little sister that was about seven years old, an elderly man and his wife, and a middle aged woman and her daughter.

The group of six all followed Sakura around, listening to her quiet orders as they made their way throughout the dungeons. The kunoichi had no trouble at all lifting the people over walls and aiding them when necessary and they soon made it out of the base.

The whole rescue took a couple of hours to fully complete but the young female was completely satisfied when she managed to bring them to safety. She was able to completely heal their wounds and set off with them in tow, the little, seven year old girl hugging her waist the whole way and telling her how happy she was that she saved them. It made the kunoichi smile brightly the whole way. They all surely would have died if left in there any longer and Sakura was glad that Kakashi had said something about it.

~~_SCENE CHANGE~~_

"I see your mission was a success." Kakashi spoke, a smile hidden under his mask as he looked at the group of seven making their way toward them.

"Well not entirely." Sakura replied, rubbing the back of her head. "I figured that I'd better leave up the base in case anyone else wanted to use it, you know. Though I did set up a few bombs just in case."

Kakashi nodded and looked back at the group of previous prisoners. The kunoichi turned around to look at them firmly. "Alright you guys, time to go hide. I have a feeling that something bad is about to happen."

They all nodded in return and each one said their thanks again and started to head off into the snowy mountains, intending on going back to the village where they came from. Sakura didn't miss the shocked looks she was receiving from the camera crew and decided to ignore the fact that they were recording her and the ex-prisoners as they walked off.

Jade orbs looked over to meet her sensei's gaze. "Where are those two?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Naruto's looking for the Princess and Sasuke's looking for you." he replied, smirking at the last part. "I think he caught on to the fact that you weren't coming back from the bathroom after about two minutes."

"Let me guess." the kunoichi sighed in exasperation, "He wanted to leave to see what I was up to and Naruto said that I was probably fine, just having problems with a bawl movement or something like that."

Kakashi chuckled and Sakura knew that she was right. "Or something like that." he replied in amusement.

"Great." the pinkette groaned and watched as railroad tracks started to appear through the area, along with the loud screaming that could be heard coming from the tunnel near them. A pink eyebrow arched as the screaming continued and the sounds of a train could be heard. Sakura watched silently as a head of blonde hair came rushing out of the tunnel, barely being missed by the oncoming train as it passed through the area. What an interesting way to make an entrance. Either way though, she was prepared for a fight, quickly biting each of the pads on her fingers and doing hand signs until slamming her palm into her stomach, undoing her seal so that she had all of her chakra. She didn't have time to focus on the pain as she contacted the banshee.

"_Kaita, can we push them back?"_

"_If you're asking if we can push the train off the mountain by strength, then no. Though we could use that mountain to our advantage."_

Sakura gritted her teeth as the enemy appeared out of the train and villagers appeared at the top of the mountain, yelling at the enemy and trying to stand their ground.

"_We don't have much time. Can you deflect the kunai that I can't dodge with my barrier?"_ she asked, remembering how much blood shed there was the last time. Sakura wanted to do all that she could in order to protect the villagers and she had to admit, with Kaita on her side now and having access to her memories, it made it a whole lot easier to prepare for the attack.

"_Yes."_

And with that, the kunoichi was off as soon as the sides of the train lifted up to reveal hundreds of small cannons. She jumped in front of the charging villagers, clenching her jaw even tighter, instantly knowing that she wouldn't be able to protect all of them when they were so spread out. She would have to trust in her companion's abilities. There were yells of the kunoichi's name and the enemy's laughter as kunai flew out from the train, aimed at the villagers.

Instantly, Sakura held out her arms and spread her chakra out to form a large barrier. A blue wall spread out from her arms, stretching from every part of her body and covering a diameter of about twenty feet to the sides. The battle cries from the villagers stopped as they skidded to halt behind the pink haired kunoichi. Much to her disappointment, she couldn't stop some of the kunai, but thankfully, Kaita had that taken care of as she summoned her scythe and deflected the weapons in lightening speed, sparks seemingly appearing out of nowhere as the weapons collided and the kunai flew back towards the train.

'Damn.' the pinkette cursed inwardly, jade orbs watching the way the sharp tools hit against the see-through wall in front of her and then fell down to the snowy ground. She would have to work on this a bit more. It was a constant struggle to keep up the barrier and it was taking it's tole on her chakra quickly. Luckily, it didn't take long until a kunai was thrown at the train, an explosive attached to the end and it didn't take much thought to know who had thrown it. She was currently thanking the young Uchiha in her mind over and over again at that moment. The explosion went off a moment later and Sakura turned her attention to her female companion, a single bead of sweat rolling down her cheek.

"_Kaita, the mountain."_

Sakura dropped her barrier as soon as the kunai stopped and she turned around to the gaping villagers. She began to shove them away urgently, trying to get them out of the way, "Move. A bomb is about to go off." Most of them moved right away, going for cover near her teammates for fear of being caught in the explosion. When some of them continued to gape at her, she gritted her teeth and threw her fists down by her side frustratedly. "Get the hell out of the way!" she yelled and that seemed to get their attention. They moved away quickly enough, although the same couldn't be said for the kunoichi.

Kunai embedded themselves into her back and legs, causing her to cough up blood and grunt in pain, but she ignored that and the scream of her teammates as she jumped out of the way as an explosion went off, snow from the mountain nearby coming down in fast waves.

Sakura landed on her knees off to the side and gritted her teeth as the pain shot through her body. Reaching a hand behind her to pull out the first kunai, she didn't comment on them as multiple villagers made it to her side, each looking over her wounds and thanking her gratefully. Jade orbs watched as the train started to take off, trying to beat the avalanche but didn't stand a chance against it.

Then she noticed something coming up from the distance; a blimp, the same blimp that she had placed explosives on first. Once it was up in the air, but before they could get a hold of the Princess, Sakura lifted up a single hand and performed a hand sign, causing the explosives to go off. The engine was the first to go, causing a massive explosion and for the blimp to go haywire as it spun. The top was the next to go and it completely lost control as the blimp exploded.

Sakura couldn't help but grin as the people aboard it yelled and cursed, though mainly at the copy ninja, much to her amusement at the irony. The pinkette watched as Kakashi tilted his head to the side and gave the blimp one last quizzical look before it fell down into the distance, leaving the villagers and the Princess safe. The silver haired male made his way over to the kneeling kunoichi, Sasuke and Naruto in tow as they ran over to her in concern.

"Are you alright, Sakura?" the blonde asked as the Uchiha knelt down next to her, looking over the wounds on her back and legs.

"Yeah." she nodded before tilting her head to the side to look at her dark haired teammate. Sasuke looked up to meet her gaze and nodded in return, seemingly knowing what she wanted him to do without her even having to ask.

The male lowered his gaze and quickly pulled out the first kunai and instantly, a green, glowing appeared around the area, healing the wound. He blinked at it for a moment, never having seen the kunoichi healing herself without the use of her hands, though he pushed away his curiosity as he pulled out another kunai. He did his best to try and make it the least bit painful for her, but even when he felt that he could be a bit gentler with the task, she made no indication that she was in pain. It didn't take long for all of the kunai to be removed and the kunoichi set about to healing herself completely while looking over the villager's awed expressions.

Though there was one man that especially caught her attention; he looked vaguely familiar somehow. Pink eyebrows furrowed as she racked her mind for where she had seen this face before. He looked back at her quizzically through the crowd, knowing that she was watching him specifically but not knowing why.

Suddenly, it dawned on the pink haired female as she stood up, not bothering to stop him as her dark haired teammate stood up next to her, grabbed her arm, and wrapped it around his shoulder to help her with balance. "Excuse me, sir." she called out and watched as the man's eyes widened for a moment and he walked over to her, standing in front of her and giving her a curious look.

"Yes?"

"Do you have a wife and daughter?" she asked, smiling and dismissed the confused and surprised faces directed towards her.

"Why yes." he spoke, shocked. Then his face turned anxious as he questioned her quickly, "Have you seen them? Are they okay?"

Sakura's smile brightened up at the man and his concern over his family. "You should go home. I'm sure you'll be surprised by what you find."

The man literally looked like he was about to cry with relief as he thanked her gratefully and ran off into the distance toward the village. Many more ran off to chase after the man and the pinkette knew that they were family members as well. After thanking her again, the rest of the villagers made their way home. Once they were gone, Sakura let out an exhausted sigh and turned toward her grinning sensei.

"So that's what you meant by explosives." he stated calmly, making the pinkette give him a sheepish smirk.

"You caused that?" the Uchiha asked beside her ear. Sakura's face fell as she glanced over at his expressionless face and nodded her head. Would he be upset with her?

Sasuke let out a sigh but couldn't hold back a small smirk as he gazed down at her. He wasn't sure how she did it, though she had managed to keep everyone safe. "Good job, Sakura."

The pinkette instantly brightened up and gave him a smile before she brought her attention to the blonde jumping up and down in front of her excitedly. "That was awesome, Sakura!" he smirked, making her let out a laugh.

Sakura righted herself and brought up her hand, biting the pads of her fingers and doing the hand signs before putting her seal back into place. Now they would have to figure out what to do since they still had the Princess. She would have to go over the plan with Kakashi later, that was for sure.

~.~

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